Family Ties 1: Flesh and Bloodlines
by MistyLady
Summary: COMPLETE with some minor revisions! Angel thought he had killed his entire family, until a beloved member arrives on his doorstep. The question is, can she be trusted and what side is she playing for? Please R&R! Set around end S1.
1. We called him Liam

**Flesh and Bloodlines**

_Disclaimer: The characters used from the television series, "Angel" are the property of __Mutant Enemy, Inc. and Kuzui/Sandollar in association with Twentieth Century Fox Television. __ I do not profit in any way from their use. _

_Author's note: This started coming to me after watching the season one episode "The Prodigal" I saw how much Angel had cared for his little sister, even up to the end. Feel free to comment and I'm open to suggestions, although I do have an eventual ending forming in my mind already. But hey, half the fun is getting there!_

Chapter 1 We called him Liam…

It had been a quiet night at Angel Investigations, relatively speaking. Cordelia Chase, a beautiful former May Queen in her early twenties with shoulder length auburn hair, was relishing in the silence and solitude of the empty office. She was sitting comfortably in large smooth black leather chair behind her employer's desk. Both Angel and Wesley were out on separate missions. Wesley was busy tracking down a rare species of demon he had come across during one of his wandering travels, and Angel was off to put a stop to a squabble between a bunch of street thugs and a demon clan. Nothing out of the ordinary for this office.

_Why would anyone care what kind of demon it is or whether a bunch of them get killed in a back-alley brawl? _thought Cordelia as she put the finishing touches on her French manicure. _A demon is a demon in my mind, and they're all…ewww!_ _Well, maybe not quite all. S_he remembered that Doyle, the first casualty of the "Good Fight" had been half demon.

She was cracking open the latest issue of Cosmo when Wesley came fumbling though the door in his usual ungraceful manner. Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, a strangely charming British man in his late thirties with an average height and build, had come to town a few months earlier after being kicked out to the Watcher's Council and a failed stint as a Rogue Demon Hunter. While he tended to yammer on endlessly, he did prove to be an excellent resource for research and had extensive knowledge for all things demon.

"I found it!" exclaimed Wesley with a huge grin. "It was quite an amazing creature."

"Oh yeah? What was it?" asked Cordelia. She really was not the least bit interested, but was in such a relaxed mood that she decided to be polite.

"Psycho Moliosis."

"Psycho WHAT?!" "You mean like _Psycho _psycho? Like get killed in the shower of a creep motel?" Cordelia jumped out of the chair and leaned toward Wesley over the desk.

Wesley chuckled to himself. He knew that would be the first thing Cordelia thought of. "No, silly, psycho as in dealing with the brain."

"Oh, so they kill you and eat your brain. Yeah, that's much better!" Cordelia sarcastically retorted as she rolled her eyes.

Wesley sighed. This girl never ceased to amaze him. "NO, they do not kill anyone. They are a peaceful species. The psycho part comes from their use of others' brains. They are psychic."

"So they are peaceful, yet they can hear what I'm thinking?" Codelia looked worried. "I don't know. I think that might be worse!"

"It's an amazing gift really. You see their cerebrum works like a receiver…"

_Here we go._ Cordelia sighed to herself and lowered herself back into Angel's desk chair. _I had to ask and now I'm going to hear about it for the rest of the night. _

"…they can only read certain things and have a maximum reading distance of…"

Cordelia looked at her watch. It was getting late. Wesley was still yammering on, and Angel should have been back by now. _Stop it, Cordy_ she scolded herself, _Angel probably just got caught up in something. He can take care of himself._

"…they have used this technique for centuries. They even knew that Brutus was planning on killing Caesar…"

_But maybe he IS in trouble. It wouldn't be the first time he's gotten in over his head._ Cordelia was just about to suggest to Wesley that they should go out and track down Angel, when she heard the soft click of the door being shut. She assumed Angel had returned, but was surprised to see a young girl standing in their office instead.

"Hi, welcome to Angel Investigates where we help the hopeless. How may we help you?" Cordelia recited the normal opening line she gave to clients after a moment. "I'm Cordelia Chase, and this is my associate Wesley Wyndam-Pryce."

"Hello, I sure hope you can help me," replied the girl sadly. She appeared to be about thirteen, and was about 5 feet tall with dark brown hair tied in a disheveled ponytail. She had thin pale features and intense dark brown eyes that seemed to absorb everything she gazed at, and was dressed in clothes that were obviously secondhand. Wesley thought he could almost see the beyond-her-years wisdom that lay behind those eyes and angelic-looking face. It was startling to him, and made him slightly suspicious of this girl.

"We'll try our best," smiled Cordelia. She only now noticed the girl's unkempt appearance. _Well, I guess a pro bono gig every now and then couldn't hurt._ She was doubtful this girl even had a home, let alone money to pay the bill. "I don't mean to pry, but where are your parents? Isn't it a little late for a girl your age to be out wandering alone?"

"My parents are dead," replied the girl curtly. Then she softened a bit. "They died a long time ago. I am looking for a man. I heard he might be he in L.A."

"I see," Cordelia said, reaching for a pen and a tablet. "Now could you tell me everything you can about him, what he looks like, etc?"

"Gosh, I hope I can remember. It's been so long since that…"

"So long since that what?" Wesley pressed. He still was not too sure about this mysterious girl.

"Never mind," she responded in the same curt manner as before. She thought for a moment. "He probably looks in his mid-twenties. He's fairly tall, has broad shoulders, dark brown hair…"

"Ok, that's a pretty good start," Cordelia said, writing down the description. "Anything else? A name maybe?"

"We called him Liam…," the girl said slowly.


	2. Guardian Angel

Chapter 2 Guardian angel

_What a wonderful night_ thought Angel as he cruised through the streets of L.A. in his black convertible classic car. _It's warm and there's even a bright full moon. _Angel loved a full moon. It was the closest thing to sunlight he could get.

The fight had not been a challenge at all, just a group of guys and demons trying to blow off some steam. Other than that it had been a calm night. Cordelia did not have any visions from the Powers that Be, and secretly, Angel hope that was still the case when he returned to the office. The past few weeks had been trying on him, even being a vampire. Most nights were filled with some sort of major threat to the city. As much as he enjoyed fighting the "Good Fight" and so on, there was still a part of Angel that really needed a break, even if it was just for one night.

A warm breeze hit his face. Angel closed his eyes and savored the moment. _With the bright moonlight and this, I can almost imagine myself in the sunshine again._ He missed that more than he would like to admit. It was the little things about humanity that Angel missed the most.

Suddenly, there was a cry of a man. Angel opened his eyes just quick enough to slam on the brakes and swerve the car to avoid hitting the drunken man in the street, and see the man leap out of the way.

"Ok, maybe closing ones eyes while driving is not such a good idea," Angel said to himself. Then aloud to the man, "I'm sorry, sir. Are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah," the drunk said to no one in particular. He mumbled something inaudible and staggered down the sidewalk.

"Oh God, I need a vacation," Angel said on the road once again. This time, he would keep his eyes open. He figured it was getting late and should head back to the office. Cordelia would probably be worrying about him already.

Just as he was pulling up outside the office of Angel Investigations, he spotted a small figure, probably a girl, entering the building. _That's strange,_ he thought. Then he saw two men climb out of a black SUV across the street heading in the same direction as the girl. Angel got an uneasy feeling about these men. He climbed out of his car and toward the men to see what was going on. One man saw Angel striding towards them and elbowed the second man. They both turned and sprinted back to their vehicle, and then made a quick getaway.

_Now that is REALLY strange. It looked like they were following her._ Angel stood outside the building and replayed the incident in his head. He then entered the building in hopes of finding the girl and making sure she was safe. He searched the building but came up empty. He then came to the last place to look, the office. He opened the door and was about to announce his return, when he heard a girl's voice talking with Cordelia and Wesley. It sounded like they had the situation under control.

"We called him Liam…"

Angel's heart jumped to his throat. That was his name back before he became a vampire and took the name Angelus. Was this girl looking for him, and if so, how did she know that name? It had not been used for over 244 years. Something was definitely not right here and Angel was going to get to the bottom of it.

"Liam? Wow, I pity him when he was in school!" Cordelia said under her breath.

Upon hearing the girl's reply, Wesley become alarmed._ Liam! I have only heard on one person named Liam, but surely she can't mean him. _Wesley, growing more and more suspicious of this girl by the minute, slowly reached for the nearest dagger and wooden stake. It wouldn't be the first time a "client" had set them up. One couldn't be too careful.

"…he may be known as Angelus now," the girl continued.

"That's it," said Wesley, grabbing the girl's shoulder and holding the knife threateningly close to the girl's throat. She froze in shock at this violent attack. "Who are you and what do want with Angelus! Speak!"

"WESLEY! Stop it!" cried Cordelia. She was completely surprised at Wesley's outburst. She ran around the desk and made a frantic grab for Wesley's arm. This was an unusual violent-streak for Wesley and it frightened her. On top of that, what would Angel think? "We don't make a habit of assaulting our clients!"

"No, we don't. Put the knife down Wes," came a voice from the doorway. Wesley lowered the knife and stepped away from the girl.

"My apologies," mumbled Wesley.

"Now, who's looking for Liam," Angel asked as he walked into the room.

"I am…" the girl started. Her voice dropped off and she just sat there staring at Angel. He looked familiar, yet foreign to her. She pictured him with longer hair and the traditional clothes of the day on his large, strong frame. It was him! She just sat frozen in shock for the second time tonight.

Angel was getting more uncomfortable by the minute. He wasn't used to being stared at and sized up like that. Well, at least when he wasn't in a fight with some evil creature, that is. He finally cleared his throat and a nervous grin appeared on his face. He noticed the girl start at the noise as if it awakened her from being deep in thought.

Katie snapped back to reality. It had to be him. She looked at the handsome man standing in front of her and noticed the familiar twinkle in his eye from long ago. Her eyes went wide and a big smile crossed her face.

"It's you! Oh, I can't believe I've finally found you after so long!" the girl cried. Tears of happiness started running down her cheeks. She jumped out of the chair, ran over to Angel, and threw her arms around him. She could barely contain her excitement.

Angel was stunned by this sudden occurrence. All he could do was just stand there in utter confusion while this girl clung to him. She looked vaguely familiar, but he could not remember from where. He had seen many faces over his many years.

"My Liam. Oh my beautiful angel. My beautiful guardian angel…" The girl sobbed into Angel's chest.

This time, Angel's eyes went wide. Only one person had ever called him a guardian angel. His sister Katherine had nicknamed him that after he rescued her from a tree she had climbed on their estate but could not get back down. It was she who had invited him into the house after he had become a vampire. _She thought I returned to her...an angel._ It was from that encounter he took the name Angelus, and now Angel. _It can't be her though. I killed her along with the rest of my family._

"Umm…who are you?" asked Angel suspiciously while gently pushing the girl away. The girl stepped back and wiped away some tears.

"Don't you recognize me, Liam? I'm your sister," the girl said, trying to stop her sobs. "It's Katherine."

"His name is _Angel_," Wesley said from behind her.

"Kathy?" Angel asked hesitantly.

The girl nodded though her remaining tears. "Yes, it's me, only I go by Katie now. It's more modern."

"But I thought you were… you all were…," Angel stammered. He started to pace in front of his desk.

"Dead?" Katie interrupted. She took on scathing tone, "Yeah, so did I. Until I woke up with a bloodlust and no heartbeat, that is." She turned away from Angel. Angel was stunned and tried to fathom how this could have happened. His own sweet sister was a vampire, but how? He had been a virtual newborn into vampirism, but he knew that he had drained his entire family. Katie had been the first since she was at the door.

"I knew there was something odd about you," said Wesley, breaking the silence. He was in a near panic. "She's a vampire, Angel. What are we…?" But Angel interrupted before the "going to do?" part.

"Wes, could you and Cordy give us a minute?" Angel replied, amazed that he could still speak.

"But surely you don't want us to leave you alone with her. You can't trust her, Angel…," Wesley stammered. Angel's judgment was impaired at the return of his alleged sister.

"Wesley, let's go," Cordelia cut in, elbowing Wesley in the ribs. "Those two have a lot to catch up on."

"But...," Wesley started, but Cordelia grabbed his arm and led him out of the room.

"Cordelia, do you know what is going on?" Wesley asked in a hushed voice outside the building.

"Duh, Wes, Angel has been reunited with his long-lost sister. So?"

"So, he killed his entire family, sister included, two centuries ago," Wesley explained. "If that's the case, this girl is over 245 years old!"

"Oh, she aged really well then," Cordelia reasoned.

Wesley continued. "Cordelia, she's a vampire. I don't know if she is really Angel's sibling yet, but sister or not, vampires are bad. Vampires without souls are evil. If Angel is fighting the 'Good Fight', he's going to have to kill her!"


	3. It couldn't have been you

Chapter 3 It couldn't have been you

"Yes, we do have a lot to catch up on," Katie finally said to the wall. She turned toward Angel. Angel had stopped pacing and was leaning up against his desk, not quite trusting himself to stand up yet. He nodded and gestured at the chair with his arm, then crossed them again. Katie sat down across from Angel and stared at her clasped hands in her lap. She had a felling this was going to be extremely more difficult than she had ever imagined. After a long awkward silence, she finally spoke.

"I've carried a question all this time. How could you do that to us? We were your family, Liam. I know you had a grudge against father, but what about mother and me. I thought you loved us, Li…Angel." She looked up at him with tears already pooling up in her eyes. Angel sighed.

"I have no easy answer for that, Katie. I couldn't control it. I couldn't control him…Angelus," Angel finally said. He was on the verge of breaking down, something he had never truly done. Just when he was finding peace with his horrible, violent past, here it was to haunt him again.

"I can understand going after father, I've been a new vampire too. You felt as if you had to get back at him. I can forgive you for that," she looked Angel straight in the eye. "It's been a struggle, but I have even been able to forgive you for what you did to mother. However," Katie's voice dropped to a whisper. "I don't think I can ever forgive you for what you did to me."

Angel felt tears come to his eyes. He tried to fight them. He had to be strong. Angel balled his hands into fits and squeezed until he could feel his nails digging into his palms. The word _betrayal_ sounded in his head over and over again. Betrayal, that's what it was.

"I loved you, Li…Angel," Katie stammered between her sobs. "I still love you. I always have, Angel."

Angel finally stood up and pulled Katie to her feet. He wrapped his arms around her and reflected back 245 years to that horrible night. What had gone wrong?

Galway, Ireland 1753

Liam, freshly born into vampirism, stood conversing with his sire, Darla. He had made his first kill of the graveyard guard who mistook them as grave robbers. He could still taste the man's warm blood on his lips. He felt free. He could do anything and no one would ever be able to stop him again. He was hungry, through. It was intense hunger like he had never felt before. After his first taste of blood, he needed more.

"You can have anyone," Darla said. She was a beautiful blonde young woman dressed in an elegant gown. "Who do you want first?"

"Just one?" Liam asked, smirking. "I'm ready for a feast." Darla chuckled and together they walked out of the graveyard and toward Liam's home.

"Remember, dear boy, you have to be invited in now," Darla informed him as they entered the property. They stopped just outside the door.

"Aye," was all Liam replied. He raised his and gave a soft knock on the wooden door. After a moment, his young sister, Katherine, opened the door. Her eyes went wide and she was speechless. Her beloved brother had come back to her, even from the dead, just as he promised the day he left.

"Liam, you…you're an angel. You came back to me!"

"Aye, I did," smiled Liam. He could smell her blood pulsing though her young body and her neck was irresistibly tempting. "May I come in?"

"You certainly may!" cried Katherine, tears of joy running down her face. It was a miracle! Liam entered the house and found himself being held tight by Katherine. He knelt down and she threw her arms around his neck. He held her at arms length.

"Ah, no more tears, sweet Kathy. I have come back for you," and with that, he turned vampire and sunk his teeth into her neck and drank. She gave a weak cry and then all was quiet except for the faint sucking noise of Liam feeding.

He pulled away and held her up for a moment. The blood was sweet and momentarily satisfying. Suddenly, Liam though he felt a pang of something as he started at her lifeless form. It wasn't guilt or sadness, nor was it triumph. It was a pang of…he couldn't describe it. Was it love? Could vampires feel love for a mere human? He turned back into human form and kissed her softly on the lips before letting her slide down the doorframe to the floor. He then looked for his next victim. He felt a bit of blood dripping down the corner of his mouth. He wiped it away with his sleeve and went in search of his father…

_Oh my God! The kiss,_ thought Angel. _That was it. I sired poor sweet Katherine and didn't even know it!_

Angel pulled way from Katie. She just stood there and looked at him.

"It was the kiss, Katie," Angel started.

"What kiss?" She was confused at this seemingly unrelated statement. A look of confusion crossed her face.

"I gave you a kiss after I fed…," Angel faded off. Then quietly, "I thought you were dead. I didn't realize…"

"Angel, don't," Katie whispered as she took a step closer toward him. As painful as it was to hear him talk about that night, shoe couldn't let her brother take the blame for this. "It wasn't you. It was that awful Darla who took you way from me. It wasn't you."

"But it was," Angel argued.

"No it wasn't! It couldn't have been you. You would never do something this terrible to me. Not ever!" she pleaded. "Not you." Even as she spoke, she could see the truth in his face. She had spent all these years trying to convince herself that Liam had not been to blame. She started to believe that as truth, but deep down, she now realized, she had known the truth all along. Standing face to face with him made it undeniably clear. It had been Liam -Angelus- who had done this to her. Katie could feel 244 years' worth of emotion and denial bubbling up inside her. She felt as if she would explode. _I have to get out of here!_

Angel had never been more ashamed in his entire life. He had sired a few vampires in his time and had killed many people, but he never felt such an overwhelming guilt. Even is first cursed hours after the gypsies gave him back his soul, it wasn't this bad, and this was family. His most cherished member of his old family. He'd never let any harm come to her. He had failed Katie miserably. She was murdered, by his own hand! No,this was worse than murder. Murder left no torture for the victim. This was never-ending torture. How was he going to make her understand?

"I did it, Katie. I didn't mean to. I couldn't control it. You just have to accept that," Angel couldn't look her in the eye. He just sighed. What could he say? Nothing he said was going to make this go away or get any better. The tension in the room was suffocating. They stood in silence staring at the ground for what felt like forever.

"I have to go," Katie said finally as she turned to leave. She was not ready for this. She knew what being out of control felt like; she was on the ragged edge of it right now.

"Wait, where are you going? I mean, do you have a place to go?" Angel took his eyes off the floor and looked up at his sister.

"I'll find someplace. I always do." She crossed her arms and turned to leave again.

"Katie, stay with me tonight. I have an apartment in the basement. No windows," Angel tried to lighten the tension in the room.

"Thanks, but I need some time and space to think," Katie faintly smiled back and opened the door to leave.

"The door's always open," Angel called after her.


	4. Need a ride?

Chapter 4 Need a ride?

Katie stepped out into the darkness of night. Her mind was flooded with emotion and confusion. She had finally found her brother after what seemed like an eternity. It was all so sudden though. She had planned on having time to prepare for the reunion; instead, she was blindsided by it. Angel seemed nice and a little less arrogant than he used to be as a human, but Katie still wasn't sure she could trust him. Even with a gypsy curse, how could someone go from being the Scourge of Europe, the things nightmares are made of, to mister nice "help the hopeless"? It was hard to imagine.

Katie continued down the street and found herself walking along the beach. She collapsed onto the sand and watched as the full moon set out over the water. It had been quite an emotional night and she was too exhausted to move. _I only need a few minutes, just a rest._ Her eyes closed and she welcomed the peace of sleep.

Meanwhile, Angel was pacing in his apartment. There was no way he could fall asleep now. It was like a ghost from his past had come to torment him, and this one had to be the worst of them all. _I now know how she felt when she thought I had returned from the dead._ He loved Katie and was overjoyed to be able to see her face again, but now under the circumstances. He could already tell that Wesley didn't trust her. Was he right? Could he be able to see danger where Angel only saw his greatest betrayal, his sister? He needed to talk to Wesley, and fast. Angel looked at the antique clock on his wall. 4 am. It would soon be dawn and now it was time for Angel to attempt sleep.

Angel flopped onto the bed. This was not going to work. How could he possibly sleep after all this? He had eventually started to drift off, when he remembered something from earlier in the night. Those men who ran away outside the office, they had to be after Katie! Danger or not, Angel would not let anything happen to her. He used to intimidate the children at her school so she would never get teased, and usually followed her from a distance whenever she would go into town. That was probably one of the only things Liam had done for someone besides himself.

He leapt out of bed and within minutes, was outside searching. Where could she have gone? Angel looked up at the sky and noticed a pink hue coming from the eastern horizon. _Uh, oh,_ Angel thought. _Here comes the dawn._ He ran though the streets as long as he could, but finally had to escape to sewer.

He eventually made it back to his apartment and lay down on the couch contemplating the events of the evening. Had she been real? Did is sister really show up last night? He had no idea where to go from here. He couldn't just let Katie run loose on the streets of L.A., but he was uncertain of which side she was really on and therefore had to be cautious. _Vampires are always unpredictable like that_, Angel chuckled to himself wearily. If he couldn't find a way to make this situation humorous, it would drive him insane. _I sure hope she doesn't take after me!_ That was the thought that frightened him the most. Back in his evil days, Angelus was the most feared vampire. He was bloodthirsty and ruthless, but it was his charming facade and cunningness that made him the best, the most dangerous. _If Katie is at all like that…_ Angel shuddered at the thought.

Angel finally calmed his mind down enough to slip into a restless sleep. There was nothing he could do until later anyway. __

Katie woke up to a warm breeze. The coolness of night had been replaced by the warming of day. Sunlight glistened off the water like a thousand diamonds as the waves moved in and out. Katie sat up with a start. SUNLIGHT! She looked around frantically. Her salvation was the large five story hotel the sat at the edge of the beach. Its shadow was the only thing that kept her from being barbequed! She ran towards the building just as a ray of light shone on the very spot where she had slept. _Now what? Where do I go?_ Katie didn't know the sewer tunnels well enough and the only entrance she could see was bathed in sunlight.

"You look a little lost," said a male voice from behind a palm tree. Katie spun around half expecting Angel to be there. Instead, there stood a man in a sharp business suit. He was in his early thirties, medium build, with sandy blonde hair that was rebelling against the hair gel used to slick it into place. What Katie noticed most was his ocean blue eyes that sparkled with some hidden sense of humor. "Need help?"

"Oh, no. I don't think so," she chuckled in reply after recovering from the initial surprise. She was grateful for the attention. It had been a while since anyone truly tried to help her.

"Are you sure?" the man pressed on. "My name is Marcus." He handed Katie a business card that read 'Wolfram and Hart'. "Are you new around here? I recognize almost everyone around here, but I've never seen you before."

"I'm Katie. I just got here yesterday," Katie said. This man seemed genuinely interested. Still, she had to be careful.

"Where do you and your folks hail from?"

"I'm from out of town, out of the country even. My parents are dead."

"Oh, I see. You're an orphan coming to L.A. to discover your dreams," Marcus said with a wink and a knowing smile. "Same story I've heard a hundred times."

"Something like that," Katie replied. _What was I going to say? No, I'm here to find my 250 something year old vampire brother now that he got cursed and isn't completely evil anymore. Oh yeah, and I'm a vampire too! _Katie smiled to herself at that ridiculous thought. No one would believe her.

"Hey, you seem like you have an interesting story to tell, and I like talking with you. Want to come back to the office with me and have a real conversation? I mean, if you don't have anywhere else to go," Marcus asked while gesturing to his car that Katie only now noticed was parked conveniently in the shade.

"Sure," Katie smiled. She stepped closer to Marcus who put his hand on her shoulder as they walked toward the car. As if by instinct, Katie sniffed the air. There was nothing. She stopped for a second and sniffed again. If this man were human, she would have been able to smell blood, but nothing registered.

"What is it?" Marcus asked with a concerned look.

"Oh, nothing. I just thought I heard something," Katie lied. They arrived at the car and she noticed the darkly tinted windows. She had forgotten to think about how she was going to ride in full daylight in a car. "Nice windows," she said, trying to change the subject.

"Thanks," replied Marcus, unlocking the car. "I don't like glare and it keeps the interior from fading."

_Sure it does,_ thought Katie. She was certain he must be a vampire too. Her suspicions were heightened when she saw Marcus carefully sidestep a spot of sunlight on the way to the driver's side door. She was especially certain when she noticed that Marcus did not have a reflection in the driver's side mirror. She looked in the mirror on the passenger side and sighed. It was like she wasn't even there.

The drive through the city was fantastic. Marcus pointed out landmarks and buildings along the way. Finally, they turned past one of most grand buildings Katie had ever seen.

"Welcome to Wolfram and Hart," Marcus said proudly as he pulled into a parking garage under the building. "Impressive, isn't it?"

"Aye, you really work here?"

"Aye," remarked Marcus, imitating Katie. "Aye instead of yeah, where did that come from?" He pulled into a space and got out.

"Back home in Ireland," Katie said, also exiting the car.

"Ireland, huh? Funny, you don't have much of an accent."

"I haven't been there in a long time. Not since my parents were murdered by my brother…" Katie stopped herself. She was getting so comfortable talking to Marcus that she was letting things about her past slip. He was so easy to talk to though, and they seemed to enjoy each other's company. Katie had always been a loner since she was turned. She missed the camaraderie.

"Murdered by your brother? God that's rough," Marcus said with a look of pity on his face. He looked over to Katie and smiled. "I see he didn't get you."

"He tried, but I escaped," Katie started to think that maybe talking with Marcus anymore wasn't such a good idea. She already revealed too much. "I have to go, thanks for the ride, Marcus." She started to walk away.

"Wait, I thought we were going to talk," he replied to her sudden statement of departure. Katie kept walking. "Well, you have my number in case you change your mind."

"Thanks!" Katie called over her shoulder. She looked down at the business card she held in her hand, placed it in her back jeans pocket and started jogging, not knowing where she was going. There had to be a sewer entrance somewhere around here.

Marcus smirked with satisfaction as he entered the building. He had done extensive research for Wolfram and Hart on the background of Angel. "Know your enemies," the senior partners had said. This girl was the spitting image description of Angel's little sister and everything she'd said had made him surer this was really Katherine. He had hoped for a believable imposter to spy in Angel's camp and throw him off a bit, but the real deal, while thought to have been impossible, was even better. Even if it turned out that she was someone else, she could definitely be a convincing double. What a better ally than a betrayed little girl with an innocent face? The senior partners were going to be pleased to hear about this new development. He was bound to get a promotion for this. _We WILL meet again, Katie._


	5. Hungry?

Chapter 5 Hungry?

Katie finally found her way around L.A,'s tunnel system and miraculously arrived at the underground entrance of Angel's apartment. She quietly entered the living room and gave a soft knock on the doorframe. The walls were all brick with a hardwood floor. It gave the apartment a rustic look, and true to his word, there was a distinct lack of windows. Katie noticed quite a few antique pieces scattered about the room; paintings, vases, sculptures, and even some antique furniture. It gave the apartment a strange kind of homey feel. _Must be mementos he collected over the years._

A shuffling noise caught her attention. It sounded like it was coming from behind the beat-up leather couch facing away from her. Katie crept over to investigate and found Angel tossing in his sleep. She laughed to herself, but stopped to catch the mumbles Angel had just started up.

"No…don't…don't take her…no…what…what have I done…"

"Angel, wake up," Katie whispered. "You're having a nightmare."

"Katie…don't…," Angel mumbled, still fully asleep. "Katie…KATIE!"

"Angel!"

"Katie?!" Angel sat up in sleepy confusion and proceeded to slide off the couch landing on the floor with a thud. He pulled himself back up and shook his head to clear it. "Katie?"

"Yeah, that's my name, and you're wearing it out," she smiled with a mischievous grin. "Time to get up, sleepyhead!"

Angel looked around. "How'd you get here?" he asked, now semi-coherent.

"Through the tunnels. It's a miracle I found my way here. I hope you don't mind me letting myself in."

_Looks like I have to secure that entrance a little better._ "No, that's fine," he said while standing up and stretching. He gave Katie a sidelong glance. "How long were you standing there watching me sleep?"

"Ah, just long enough to hear all of your big secrets, and see just how big of a dork you really are. Some things never change!" Katie teased. She was already feeling their real-life relationship growing again, and for the first time in a very long time, Katie smiled and really meant it.

"Ha ha," Angel narrowed his eyes at her jokingly. After a moment he asked, "Hungry?"

"Oh, breakfast sounds wonderful!" Katie responded enthusiastically and bounded toward the kitchen.

"I'll be right there, just let me get cleaned up a bit first," Angel yelled from the living room. "There are fresh containers of…well, you'll see…in the fridge. Grab a pot and boil some water if you like yours warm."

"Ok," Katie called back as she was searching the cupboards. Finding the mugs in the last section she looked in, she set two on the small kitchen table and set the pot on the stove to boil. She then went to the refrigerator to grab two containers of animal blood that Angel had gotten from the local butcher. He had known that Angel was a vampire for a while now, and would call him anytime a new shipment had arrived. What surprised Katie when she opened the door wasn't the sight of numerous blood-filled plastic containers packed into the small refrigerator, but the presence of human food too. There was milk (fresh not spoiled), eggs, bacon, butter, several containers of Chinese take-out, and even a leftover slice of cheese pizza.

"Angel?" Katie yelled as she grabbed two containers of blood and shut the door.

"What's wrong?" Angel said as he entered the kitchen. He had changed his clothes and from the looks of his wet hair, he must have quickly showered too.

"Nothing really. I was just wondering, why do you have food in your fridge?" she asked curiously.

"Isn't that what's supposed to be kept in there?" Angel said with a slight grin. Then added thoughtfully, "I could go get my axe and swords. They should fit."

"You know what I mean," Katie replied, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, I know," Angel said with a small laugh. "It's for Cordelia and Wesley. We have this tradition where we all come back here and I make them breakfast after an all-nighter of fighting and such."

"You… make them breakfast? And they actually eat it?" Katie asked in disbelief.

Angel nodded with pride, "Cordelia loves my scrambled eggs and occasional omelets. Wes has an odd craving for toast," Angel shrugged his shoulders. "Cordy once told me that I was an excellent cook especially for someone on a 'liquid diet'."

Katie and Angel both started to snicker, and then is escalated to roaring laughter. The comment really was not that funny, but it had been so long since either had done that and it felt so good, neither seemed to be able to stop. Laughter filled the kitchen and echoed throughout the apartment. Katie hugged her arms around her stomach and was hunched over in hysterics. Angel was busy holding himself up on the counter and banging it lightly with his palm. Their laughing fit would have gone on for a while yet, but was interrupted by the sound of water boiling over the pot. Angel reached to turn the burner off while Katie, through tears, set the two containers in the pot to warm up. Neither one looked at the other for fear of the breaking into giggles yet again.

After breakfast, Katie flopped down on the couch while Angel cleaned up in the kitchen. He walked into the living room drying his hands off with a towel. He noticed that Katie was wearing the same clothes as the day before. In fact, he guessed, they were the some clothes she had been wearing for several days. He knew what living in the gutter was like. He'd been down there for many years after the gypsy curse, right up until he managed his way into Sunnydale. _No, don't think about that place. Once you start, you don't stop._ Katie needed clothes. Clothes meant mall, mall meant shopping, and shopping meant Cordelia.

"I will be right over," Cordelia said though the telephone. "Wait, do I have to pay for this?" she asked hesitantly.

"Company expense," replied Angel.

"I will be right over!" She squealed so loud that Angel had to move the receiver away from his head.


	6. You're a seer, with style!

Chapter 6 You're a seer, with style!

"Now normally, I've been more of a boutique shopper since moving to Los Angeles, but I do shop in malls occasionally," Cordelia explained over the throaty roar of Angel's black Plymouth. Although it looked like Mother Nature was on the girls' side with an unusually dense overcast, they did not want to risk Katie being exposed to sunlight on the sidewalks of L.A.'s shopping district.

"How can you afford all of these clothes? Didn't you say your family was broke now?" Katie questioned from the passenger seat. They had stopped back at Cordelia's apartment to get Katie a new outfit. 'You can't go out in public dressed like that! No offense,' had been Cordy's initial reaction. They spent some time there trying to find something to fit Katie's petit frame. Dennis, Cordy's resident g-h-o-s-t roommate, had helped the girls choose a purple flowered wrap skirt, a lacy white peasant blouse, and some hemp-looking flip-flops. Personally, Katie thought she looked like a 60s hippie wanna-be, but Cordy assured her that the flower-child look was back in.

"They are. I've learned that I have to work hard to get what I want," Cordelia smiled back. "If I find something I want, I work hard until I can get it."

_That sounds like me finding and building a relationship with my brother, _Katie thought. "But what if something gets in the way or prevents you from getting it—whatever 'it' might be?"

"Pssh, nothing that gets in my way is left standing!" Cordelia replied with a smirk.

"That's great! Way to be!" Katie complimented. _My thoughts exactly! Cordelia and I are really connecting. I always wanted a big sister, _Katie mused. Even though she was eight times older than Cordelia, Cordy was showing her aspects of the world that she had always seemed to avoid.

"Earth to Katie!" Katie jumped in her seat. "We're here," Cordelia giggled.

"Then let the shopping begin!"

Angel was comfortably situated in his old leather recliner deeply engrossed in an old novel held in one hand and a glass of blood on the end table right next to it, when the sound of shopping bags and high heels floated down the stairs. There was cheerful chatter from the two girls, now back from their shopping trip. Angel sighed and put his book on the table. His afternoon of peace and quiet had ended.

"What do you think?" Cordelia asked entering the room and smiling with pride.

"I think you have been gone for so long I was ready to send out a search party," Angel mumbled, clearly not all that interested in hearing Great Adventure at the Mall.

"Be serious," Cordelia rolled her eyes. "I mean about Katie."

"What about her?" Angel asked clearly confused. It was like these girls had an inside joke that he was not part of. He glanced at Cordy, then Katie who was standing in the shadows trying to figure out where to put the shopping bags to keep them out of the way, and back to Cordy.

"ANGEL!" Cordy yelled in exasperation. He boss was so smart sometimes, but it was moments like this where she deemed him totally and completely clueless. "JUST LOOK AT YOUR SISTER ALREADY!"

"Yeah, Angel," Katie said, coming farther into the room where there was better lighting and gave a twirl. "Look at me!"

Angel quickly looked her over not really taking anything in until he noticed what appeared to be a burn mark on Katie's lower arm. "What happened there?" he pointed. "Looks like you had a brush with sunlight."

Katie looked down at her arm and blushed. "No, it was cloudy all day. At the salon, Cordy thought I should try tanning to get some color. It didn't work out too well."

"Who knew they used UV rays in those things?" Cordelia said in her own defense with a shrug. "Now, other than that, what do you think of her new look?"

Angel glanced at his sister, desperately trying to show some interest, and then did a complete double-take. His eyes widened and it took all of his willpower to keep his jaw from dropping. The person that stood before him looked nothing like the grungy little street girl who had walked into his office the night before. Katie had been transformed into a beautiful petite young woman. She was dressed in flowing pale blue sundress with black flat sandals. Her dark brown shoulder length hair now bounced in light waves with highlights the color of amber honey. Her eyebrows had been shaped to accentuate her intense eyes. Small hoop earrings and some light make-up completed the look.

"So what do you think?" Katie asked. Angel just stared. There was no way words were going to come from his mouth. Katie and Cordelia's eyes met and they gave a chuckle.

"I take that silence as a good thing," Cordelia beamed. All Angel could do was nod.

"Cordelia and I went to the salon at the mall and then we went back to Cordy's place where she gave me a makeover."

"I figured she was old enough not to have to worry about any looks being too 'grown up' for her," Cordelia joked. Angel was still in shock.

"Hellllo! Anybody home in there?" Katie waved her hand in front of Angel's face. He hardly blinked. This was starting to get creepy. "Angel…"

Katie was interrupted by a shriek of pain from Cordelia as she clutched her head and dropped to her knees. Katie leapt out of the way as Angel jumped to action and dove to catch Cordy before she completely hit the floor.

"I'll…I'll go call 911," Katie said as she went in search for the telephone.

"No," Angel said while cradling a sobbing Cordelia in his strong arms. "Get some aspirin and a glass of water."

"But…"

"Just do it! I'll explain later."

Katie followed orders and returned in a few minutes with the requested items. By then, Angel had lifted Cordelia onto the couch and was trying to calm her down.

"Ok, could someone please fill me in on what just happened?" Katie asked as she handed Cordelia a couple of the painkillers and a glass of water.

"Cordy is a seer, Katie. She gets visions from the Powers the Be. They are usually of people and places were something evil is going to happen. It is the only way I know when and where people need me help," explained Angel as he rubbed Cordelia's back. With her eyes still closed, Cordelia reached out, and Angel handed her a pencil and notepad.

"There were two of them after a man Simon," she gasped as she wrote down an address.

"Two what? Demons? Vamps? Worse?" Angel questioned. He needed to have an idea of what he was up against.

"Demons. Thermopoli Demons to be more exact, the kind that see body heat."

"Thanks, Cordy. I'll be back in a bit." _That's no problem, I don't have any body heat._

"Are you going to take Wesley with you?" She asked, finally starting to recover.

"No, I don't know where he is and this doesn't seem too difficult. I can handle it on my own."

"I'm going with you," Cordelia said as she slowly stood up.

"No, you and Katie stay here, and lock the doors when I leave."

Katie watched as Angel went to his weapons cabinet and suited up with an assortment of daggers and knives. He also strapped on a blade that retracted into a collar around his wrist. He put on the final touch, his leather coat, grabbed his battle axe and walked upstairs like it was a normal night and he was going out for a stroll.

"Well Cordy, you sure are full of surprises," Katie said to the girl who had flopped back down on the couch, trying to lighten the situation a bit. She reflected over the day and after a moment said, "You're a seer, with style!"

Cordelia opened her eyes again and smiled over at Katie. "Yeah, I guess I am."


	7. You drive, I'll ride

Chapter 7 You drive, I'll ride.

Angel sped to 130 Willowbrook Park, the address Cordelia had given him. Although he usually would rather to fight alone, for a brief moment, he wished Wesley was there. The man could easily get on one's nerves but he did know his way with weapons. He had improved greatly since he first came to L.A. as a rouge demon hunter. Suddenly, Angel heard a noise and looked to see a black motorcycle flanking him on his right. The rider was dressed in black jeans, a leather jacket, and a shiny black helmet with a dark visor. He let go with one hand to give Angel a thumbs up, and the bike almost swerved into the passenger door. Angel smiled in spite of himself. He did have Wesley by his side, though he had no idea how Wes knew he needed him. They finally arrived at the address and pulled up in front of a duplex. Angel parked the car and got out, looking over at Wesley who was having trouble with the bike's kickstand. He finally just let it fall on its side and pulled his helmet off.

"That was good timing, Wes," Angel remarked grabbing his axe from the passenger seat. "How'd you know what I was doing?"

"Well, I would like to say that it was my superior sense for danger and evil, however I must admit that it was pure dumb luck. I was out for a ride to clear my head when I saw you drive by. I figured you were on to something and thought I'd be of some assistance," Wesley said dropping his helmet on the bike. "You didn't happen to pack an extra weapon, did you?"

Angel gave the man an amused grin and handed him a dagger. As they approached the house, Wesley whispered, "What are we looking for?"

"Thermopoli demons, two of them. They can see in pure darkness by picking up on body heat. No trouble for me there, but they will easily see you."

Angel approached the door and knock softly. When there was no answer, he took a step back and sent the door crashing in with a might kick. "Humans first," he said with a grin. Wesley went in first to check things out. Angel tried to walk though the doorway, expecting to be stopped by the mystical force field that makes it necessary for vampires to be invited into one's house. He stumbled right though. That was not a good sign. That meant that the homeowner was already dead, or it was not the home of a human. There was no rule against vampires entering demon and other vampire homes.

The house was completely dark and the only sound that could be heard was their footsteps. Angel looked around, his eyes usually adjusted quickly, but he was still virtually blind. He knew Wesley was no better off. "I have to vamp," he whispered to Wesley. His vampire senses emerged and his golden eyes cut through the dark like someone had turned on a light. Both men found it odd that a house located in the middle of a city could be so dark. They searched around downstairs when they heard a slight shuffle coming from the upstairs.

"Did you hear...?" Wesley started under his breath. Angel nodded and pointed upstairs. The two men crept up the stairs and down the hallway. They spied a dim strip of light coming from under one of the doors. Angel put his ear up to the door to hear what was going on. He heard a man talking desperately in a hushed terrified voice.

"I told you I don't know. I can't help you..." he sobbed.

"You can help us and you will," came a voice that was definitely not human.

"No…you can't…" the man gasped.

"You have no idea who or what you are dealing with human," the demon started.

"He may not, but I do!" Angel kicked in to door and stood face to face with Thermopoli Demon #1. The demon was over six and a half feet tall with a face that looked like a bad combination of crocodile and rhino with a flatter face. His skin was the color of liquid mercury and his horn was a bright green. Both demons wore red cloaks with hoods. _The horn is where they take heat readings,_ Wesley recalled from the doorway.

"Help me! Please help me!" the man, Angel now assumed to be Simon, pleaded from the corner.

"I think it's past your bedtime," Angel taunted the demons. "Lights out!"

At that signal, Wesley flipped the light switch and the room was shrouded in darkness. He then quickly crawled across the floor over to Simon to help him out of the room. The Thermopoli Demons could see him, but if they stayed close to the ground, the two men would be harder to detect. Without light and without a body heat register, the demons were blind, but Angel was not. He made short work of Demon #1 and sent Demon #2 crashing into a wall. He had kept them distracted from Wes and Simon who were now out in the hallway scrambling down the stairs.

"Leaving so soon are we? We didn't even get to know each other yet," came the voice of a third Thermopoli Demon who was lurking in the darkness. Wesley pulled out his dagger and leapt toward the voice, but was easily deflected into a granite mantel across the room. He laid there stunned, trying to catch the breath that had been completely knocked out of him. Slowly, he got up on his knees and shakily stood up.

"Wesley?" Angel called into the darkness. He had gone out to the car, but neither man was there. "Simon?"

"In here, Angel," Wesley gasped. "Simon's gone."

"What?"

"There was a third Thermopoli down here. I tried to stop him, Angel. Honestly I did!" Wesley pleaded. This had not been his first screw-up and one of these times it was going to be his last. Angel was going to fire him.

"We'll find him, Wes" Angel said with conviction while helping Wesley out to the car. "Can you ride?" Angel asked nodding toward Wesley's bike.

"Of course," Wesley retorted as he let go of Angel and nearly fell over. The world was spinning and he couldn't make it stop.

Angel shook his head. "You drive, I'll ride." A thrill of excitement flashed through him and he had to work to hide the big grin that threatened to spread across his face. He had always wanted to ride Wesley's motorcycle, but never felt it was the proper time to ask.

"Oh, and Wes," Angel said with a smirk as he straddled the bike and slipped on the helmet. "Don't crash my car." He pulled down the visor and finally let that smile show on his face.

After searching blindly for the missing man and demon, Angel and Wesley called it a night. Wesley was still recovering from the attack that left his equilibrium completely out of sync. They both drove back to the office and crashed at Angel's for the night.


	8. Family first

Chapter 8 Family first

Angel woke up a little later than usual due to the long night and found that he was getting a late start to the day, not that he had plans. Angel knew his life was so uncertain that it would be near pointless to plan ahead more than an hour or two unless he was on a mission. He quickly showered, found a clean pair of black slacks among the mess of his bedroom, and put on a sliver button-down shirt. He stood a moment looking at the shirt. It reminded him of the Thermopoli Demons which reminded him of his failure to rescue Simon. He threw that shirt on the nearest chair and chose a dark green pullover. He took one last look around the room. _God, what a mess!_ This place needed to be picked up. _No time like the present._ Angel sighed and started grabbing clothes from various pieces of furniture.

Satisfied with his cleaning job, Angel wandered into the kitchen for some breakfast. He had just opened the door of his refrigerator trying to decide if he was in the mood for chicken, pork, or cattle blood, when he heard a crash from upstairs in the office.

"What the…" The crash was followed by yells and the sounds of people fighting. Angel forgot about breakfast and headed upstairs to see what the fuss was all about.

__

Wesley had woken up and walked upstairs to the office early that morning. After napping his pain away, dreams of Katie and her potential threat to Angel had kept him up during the early morning hours. He needed to do some research and see what he could find on this girl, at least to reassure himself that nothing was going to happen to his boss and dear friend. Not knowing what to expect, Wesley looked online for news stories involving someone of Katie's description. As he flipped through the results, he became more and more disturbed. Several police have been killed by a snap of the neck in Philadelphia twenty years ago. The article went on to take about bruising that proved it was done by a child's hands, yet it would have been near impossible for a child to cause those kind of injuries. There were similar stories all over the country: A drunken businessman in Cleveland died of lung punctures caused by a kick in the chest by a small foot sixteen years ago, more unfortunate people found in back alleys…the list went on. People mysteriously killed by a child of "super human" strength. There were also numerous passing notes about homeless people being found dead and drained of their blood. Around the Midwest, mention had been made of several livestock animals being killed with what looked like "vampire teeth". Wesley had to show these to Angel immediately. He feared the Katie was following in her sire's footsteps. While these all could be circumstantial evidence, Wesley had the feeling he was on the right track.

"One more. I'll read one more article, and then get Angel," Wesley said aloud. The article was from five years ago. A husband and wife, foster parents were burned to death in their Chicago home by a fire allegedly set by their 12 year old foster daughter. She was still missing. Wesley's blood ran cold as he read to the end of the article. There was a picture of the missing foster daughter, Jenna. Jenna had dark brown, wavy shoulder length hair, intense brown eyes, thin pale features, and was a perfect match to Angel's sister.

Wesley heard the footsteps of someone entering the office. He looked up to see Katie standing in the doorway. He froze for a moment wondering if she had heard him talking out loud.

"Good Morning, Wesley," she greeted. "What are you up to?"

"I'm…umm…I'm doing research," he stammered. He had to keep it together and stay cool. He must not let on that he knew about what Katie had done.

"Cool, on what? The demons you fought last night?" Katie asked genuinely interested. She walked toward Wesley's desk.

"No, nothing really. You'd find it rather dull and boring," Wesley continued.

"Oh, try me. I've seen many things over the years, but I can never stop learning," she replied. Before Wesley had time to react, she had rounded the desk and was staring intently at the computer screen. She glanced down at the shuffled papers that cluttered the desk and saw her picture from Chicago. Her eyes narrowed a bit and the smile evaporated. She felt a wave of panic wash over her.

"You're checking up on me, Wesley? I don't think this is dull and boring."

"Well, I…" Wesley stammered.

"You were going to show this to Angel, weren't you? You want to turn him against me. You never did trust me, did you, Wesley? I could tell from the moment I walked in that I wasn't welcome, especially by you." Wesley just stared at Katie. She was completely unpredictable and he knew he had to think fast and be prepared for anything.

"Yes, I was checking up on you and yes, I am going to tell Angel. No, I don't trust you and all this," gesturing towards the computer and his notes, "proves my hunch correct. I'm afraid that Angel will be too blinded by emotion that he won't be able to see the obvious threat." Wesley defiantly drew himself up taller. He couldn't let this girl intimidate him.

"Threat?" Katie asked innocently getting closer to Wesley. "Look at me! I'm just a girl. I'm no threat to anybody…" Suddenly, her tone changed to an angry whisper as her panic turned to rage. She was furious that this little man was trying to destroy the relationship with her brother that she had waited so long for. She would not let him do it. "…unless they get in the way of what I want!"

She felt her face change and could feel her fangs slipping down in her mouth. Her brown eyes turned a striking shade of golden yellow. Her senses felt so alive! She didn't have to see things coming; she just knew and could react instantly to anything or anyone thrown her way. She could feel her vampire strength growing inside her. No, there was no way she would let Wesley ruin this for her.

She snarled and leapt at him before he had a chance to react. He fell to the floor and she rolled off of him. Wesley scrabbled to his feet and rooted around his desk desperately: A cross, a wooden stake, holy water, even a knife or gun to at least slow her down. ANYTHING! He came up empty handed.

"You really need to get organized," Katie said with a sneer as she grabbed Wesley from behind and threw him against the far wall, sending a framed painting crashing to the floor. "You can't find things when you need them the most!"

Wesley staggered to his feet once again just as Katie come up and pinned him against the wall. She hadn't intended on killing him when she had started this little spat. She just wanted to frighten him enough to keep him from telling Angel about her past. The past was the past and she wasn't about to let it ruin her future, but oh, was she hungry. She heard someone yelling in the background, but she barely heard him. She was too focused on the task at hand. She could see the blood pulsating in Wesley's neck. She lowered her fangs closer, closer, she could almost taste it already….WHAM! She felt herself being thrown across the room. She was up in a flash growling and ready to pounce on whomever had done that.

Angel stood in the middle of the room between Katie and Wesley. It was indeed starting to look like a war zone. He had arrived just in time. He tried telling her to stop, but she tuned him out. That happened sometimes Angel knew, so he was forced to send a message he knew she would get loud and clear.

"Katie, calm down. What do you think you were doing?" Angel tried to be diplomatic for a second and held his arm out to block her from getting closer. Inside that petite frame was a furious beast who would not listen to reason.

"I was doing what is right by me," Katie hissed. "He was trying to turn you against me. I couldn't let him do that."

"Angel, I was doing research on her and I found…" Wesley started timidly from behind Angel. He was interrupted by Katie's hair-curling snarl as she tried to go around Angel to attack him again. Angel picked her up and threw her against the wall again.

"STOP IT!" Angel yelled. Katie could see he was getting very angry.

"He started it!" she howled. "He never trusted me. He didn't even try to get to know me before passing judgment. He said he was going to turn you against me!"

"I most certainly did not!" Wesley shouted back coming out from behind Angel's protective body.

"LIAR!" Katie yelled as she darted around Angel and tackled Wesley to the floor. He wriggled free and just as Katie was about to spring to her feet and finish the job, she felt Angel's hand around her throat as he slammed her up against the wall.

"I said KNOCK IT OFF!" Angel bellowed in her face. She could see in his eyes that he was livid. She had never seen him this agitated, and it was beginning to scare her even more. She squirmed to free herself from Angel's firm grasp, but stopped when she felt a stake pressed against her chest by Angel's other hand.

"So this is how it ends, huh? You kill me like you were supposed to the first time but failed?" Katie sneered. She looked Angel in the eyes and slowly felt her anger melting away. He didn't want to kill her, but would if he had to. It ripped Angel apart inside behind his furious human face.

"Then go ahead bro, stake away," Katie said, her face back to normal again. "Make up for your mistake."

Angel couldn't do it. His stake dropped to the floor and he let Katie down to the ground.

"Angel, what are you doing? She was trying to kill me!" Wesley demanded from across the room, now cross in hand.

"Wesley…" Angel said quietly, calming himself down.

"Fine! If you don't finish her off, I will!" Wesley flipped the cross around to reveal a point whittled in the end. It was two weapons in one.

"Wesley," Angel held out his hand to hold Wesley back behind him. _What is wrong with him!_ Wesley thought to himself. He hated to admit it to himself, but he was scared of this girl. She had a disarming presence and then attacked when a man left his defenses down. She may not have the strength of Angel and other full grown vampires, but this girl had survived this long. She must have developed an extremely cunning strategy and relied on her slyness and wit to win battles. _If he doesn't put this family loyalty kick behind him, we are all going to perish!_

"So now what, big brother? Are you going to believe him over your own flesh and blood, or are you going to put family first?" Katie demanded.

_There she goes using the family aspect, just as I suspected,_ Wesley thought.

Angel looked her straight in the eye and said in a low serious voice, "I always put family first and foremost." His eyes were intense and flashing with anger once again at her question of family loyalty. Katie smirked victoriously at Wesley who was still trying to keep as far away from the little demon as possible, trying to come up with a strategy. He was disheartened at Angel's answer.

"But Angel…" Wesley started.

"I believe you, Wes," he continued, his eyes never leaving Katie, who know stood in a slight state of shock and confusion. He had said family first, hadn't he?

"Wesley and Cordelia are my family now and no one, not even you, is going to threaten them. I won't allow it," As much as his heart was breaking while saying these words, he knew he was right. They were his family and he would fight fiercely to protect them. Katie may have been his sister once, but she was no longer the sweet, caring and innocent girl he loved and adored. Katherine never would have hurt anyone. Katie, on the other hand, had become a violent, dangerous monster. "You may have been family once, but my sister, Kathy, is dead. You look like her, and that's the only reason I'm letting you walk out of here."

Katie just stood there stoically. She was determined not to show how much Angel's words had torn her up inside. She was dead to him. She clung to the remaining shreds of fury left inside of her. It was the only thing keeping her going right now.

"Now, get out. If I see you here again, I will dust you," Angel threatened.

"But…" Katie started.

"OUT!" Angel spat through gritted teeth and pointed toward the door. He was loosing his patience very quickly.

Katie got the message. She turned, throwing a deadly glare in Wesley's direction in the process, and slowly walked to the door. She placed her hand on the knob and turned it. Katie turned back one more time. The office was in shambles. Papers were scattered all over the floor, paintings on the walls were now lying against the molding with some shattered glass. Even a random fern had not been spared and now rested in broken shards of its terra cotta pot. There, standing among the mess was a scowling Angel. He had his arms crossed in an I've-made-up-my-mind-so-don't-even-thing-about-trying-to-change-it manner.

"Well, I guess you've turned your back on me yet again. I thought after the curse you would be a different man, but you haven't changed at all," Katie said with a quiet defeated tone. "Congratulations, Wesley, you won after all. Good bye…" She paused for effect and narrowed eyes at Angel. "Angelus." Then she was gone.

Angel and Wesley stood in silence, both trying to comprehend what exactly had happened.


	9. Nobody sees Angelus

Chapter 9 Nobody sees Angelus

Katie closed the door behind her and just stared into space. What had she done? Everything she had worked so hard for, searched for, and hoped for since she became a vampire over two centuries ago had been lost in a single moment. She had been so close to finding happiness with a real family, and now she had destroyed it all. This time, there was no one to blame but herself.

* * *

Galway, Ireland 1753

Kathy crept outside her family's house in the evening darkness, spying through the windows. She was hoping to find a moment when her brother, Liam – now dubbed Angelus – was alone from Darla's company. It had been little over week since that fateful night. She had fled the scene in fear when she had awoken the morning after, but finally returned to take her chances. Her brother had become a brutal killer, but that did not frighten her as much as the thought of being alone in the world. She held the slightest hope that he would take her and help her cope with her new place in the world.

There he was sitting in front of the fireplace with his feet propped up on the dinner table. There would be no family-cooked meals served there anymore. Kathy heard footsteps coming across the room and saw Darla approaching Angelus.

"I am going into town for a few things," Darla said with her ever-present sneer. "I will be back soon."

"Aye, you will know where to find me," Angelus replied in his arrogant tone.

Kathy waited until she heard the door close and all was silent. She crept around to the front door and raised her hand to knock. She paused and grasped the door handle instead. She slowly opened the door and was about to enter.

"Just where do you think you're going?"

Kathy jumped and turned to see Darla standing behind her, standing with her hands on her hips. "I think it is past your bedtime, is it not little girl?"

"I am here to see Angelus," Kathy said standing up to the blond woman.

"Nobody sees Angelus," Darla replied, waving a gloved hand in Kathy's face. "Now be gone."

"No, I need to see him. He may be a monster, but he's the only family I have left," Kathy said sadly.

"Oh, yes. You are his poor sister. I though he had fed on you."

"Me too, but here I am."

"Well, that's just too bad. What a waste of a precious gift! Oh, well. You were only his second 'kill'. The dear boy was bound to make a few mistakes," Darla mused. Katie made a move for the door but was stopped by Darla's arm that had shot out so fast it was nothing but a blur. "I told you, no one see Angelus."

"But…"

"You are quickly trying my patience, little one," Darla sneered. "I told you to be gone."

"No!" Kathy retorted putting her hands on her hips and narrowing her eyes in defiance. "I AM going to see Angelus whether you like it or not!" She grabbed at the door handle once more and leaped back in surprise when it opened from the inside.

"What is all this squabbling I hear?" Angelus said from the doorway. He looked from Darla to Kathy and back to Darla again. "You have returned so quickly, and I see you've brought me a gift." Angelus gestured toward Kathy. She was disheartened. He failed to even recognize her, and now he wanted her for dinner. _Too late for that,_ thought Kathy. _I'm only a one course meal._

"Sadly, no," Darla replied. "I caught her snooping around here. She claims that she must see you."

"Oh, she must, must she," Angelus leaned down and looked Kathy menacingly in the eye. There was hunger in his eyes and Kathy was silently grateful that she was a vampire. He sniffed at her neck. "Ugh!" Angelus recoiled back. "You're not human!"

"No," Kathy said quietly.

"This is our territory," Angelus fumed and gestured toward Darla who was standing there smugly. "You're not part of this family; now go before I stop being Mister Nice Guy and stake you."

"Not family?" Kathy gasped. "But you made me!"

"I said GO!" Angelus boomed completely ignoring Kathy's words. He now wore his vamp face. She knew he was all business now.

"But…" Before she could finish, Angelus picked her up and threw her into the road, about sixty feet away. She skidded on the dirt for a moment, got up, and brushed the dirt off her dress. Tears welled up in her eyes and she sobbed as she fled into the darkness. Echoes of evil laughter followed her into the night.

* * *

Katie was startled back to reality by a noise coming from the other side of the office door. She was frightened at the thought of Angel coming out and still finding her still there. He was not the same man in the office as he had been the morning after she first found him. She had seen some of the fun-loving personality he once had around her at home, but in the last few minutes all she saw was rage and fury. He may have gotten a soul and had become the 'good guy', but she knew that somewhere deep inside Angel was the evil Angelus just fighting to get out.

Another sound made her jump. She needed to get out of there fast! She ran to the front doors of the building, but was stopped by the daylight she knew was on the other side of the door. She searched around frantically for another escape route when her eyes fell upon an umbrella propped in the corner. She opened it, opened the front door, and prayed that it would give her enough cover until she could find a tunnel entrance.

  



	10. With love forever

_A.N. Thanks for the reviews! They're very encouraging. _

__

Chapter 10 With love forever

Both men were quiet for what felt like eternity. Finally, Wesley crossed the room to stand next to his boss.

"You did the right thing back there, Angel," he said quietly. Angel just blinked in response. "She was going to kill me, you know. You did the right thing."

"Did I?" Angel finally broke his silence.

"You had no choice," Wesley continued. "You were there, you saw what happened."

Angel leaned back on the desk and sighed.

"She's gone now."

"I have to find her, now," Angel abruptly said as he stood up.

"But, but why? She's gone now. I thought you didn't trust her anymore!" Wesley exclaimed.

"I don't, and that's why I need to find her right away."

"I don't understand."

"She's a vampire, and she's upset. She's also a girl and girls tend to get hungry when they get upset. I can't have her running loose in my city."

"Oh," Wesley said with a new understanding. Angel started for the door. "Wait! You can't go out now. It's noon!"

Angel turned to face Wesley. His eyes widened in disbelief and then dread. "Oh my God!"

Wesley was confused and then caught on. His expression started to mirror Angel's. Angel had sent Katie away through the front door, into daylight!

_ Oh God, oh God. What have I done?!_ Angel repeated over and over in his head as he sprinted to the building's entrance. He skidded around a corner and slid to a stop just before hitting a ray of sunshine that streamed in through one of the windows. He looked around and even called out her name, but his sister was no where to be found. He punched the nearest wall in frustration, and then thought better of striking it a second time. He was starting to catch people's attention.

"Is there another basement entrance?" Wesley asked finally catching up. Angel shook his head.

"No, just the one in my apartment, but she'd have to come back though the office to get to it." The two men returned to the office to plan their next step in the search for Angel's sister.

"What have I done, Wes?" Angel asked as he flopped down on the couch in the office's waiting room.

"Don't worry, Angel. We'll find her."

"Yeah, just like how you said we'd find that man, Simon."

Wesley groaned. "Don't remind me. Besides, this is different. This time, it's personal." Angel just sighed and stared into space. He tried not to think of the worst possible scenario, but she had been upset. He couldn't blame her for that one. She had been betrayed by the only family she had left. _What did she mean by 'I guess you've turned your back on me yet again…Angelus_'? It was such a long time ago. Angel tried to sort through over two centuries' worth of memories. Some were as clear as if they had just happened and others were so faint that he could have just imagined them. In his silent search, Angel came up empty.  
  
"…did you hear anything I just said?" Wesley's voice broke through.

"Sorry, I was just trying to remember something Katie had said. She said I turned my back on her _again._ I don't remember ever seeing her before now."

"Well, she's been around. Here, you should look at these," Wesley handed him a folder containing some of his research. "Besides, we don't even know for certain that she _is_ your real sister. It could be something cooked up by Wolfram & Hart. It certainly wouldn't be the first time they have tried something like this."

Angel glanced up at Wesley in surprise. He had been thinking the same thing for the past three days. He didn't want to admit his suspicions, though. He was about to say something when a glint of lamplight caught his eye. Angel lifted body off of the couch and walked across the room. Sifting through the mess, he pulled a gold heart-shaped locket on a fine gold chain. He just stared at it.

"What is it?" Wesley asked.

"Katie really is my sister, Wesley. This must have gotten pulled of in your fight." Wesley walked over and examined the object hanging from Angel's hand.

"It's a necklace." Wesley stated. Angel handed it to him for a closer inspection and started pacing around the room. Wesley walked over to the lamp for better lighting. It was a small locket, about one inch wide, with delicate flowers engraved on the front. "I don't understand." He looked up at Angel.

"Open it." Angel replied as if to answer Wesley's questioning look. Wesley found the tiny clasp and clicked the locket open. Inside was engraved a message. It was so small he had to hold it up closer to his eyes to see it. 'Happy Birthday, darling sister' was written on the back of the front half. 'With love forever, Liam' was written on the back half. Wesley's eyes went wide as he stared at the inscription.

"I gave that to her on her tenth birthday. One of the only gifts I brought anyone with my own money. She was so happy that day," Angel got a wistful look in his eyes. Wesley could almost he him going back in time to one of the only true happy moments of his life. "She asked me to put it on her, which I did. Then she promised, 'I will never ever take it off.' Mother used to get angry when Kathy would bathe in it, but she never made her take it off." Wesley sighed and savored the tender moment. Angel rarely talked about his past, and almost never talked about his family or life as a human.

"She never did take it off, even after all these years."

"It still could be a trick," Wesley gently reminded him. Angel shook his head.

"No, there's no way they would know about this. Even if they did, how would they know exactly what the locket looked like? I know those people...err…that company, goes to great lengths, but it would be a big stretch to go all the way to Ireland and dig up my sister's body just for an elaborate hoax." Angel shuddered and then flushed at the thought of them disgracing his sister like that. If he found out that is exactly what they had done, there would be hell to pay…literally. And that hell would be named Angel.

"Whoa, easier there. Calm down, Angel," Wesley said, his voice had a nervous tone. Angel looked at him and realized that he had gotten so upset that he had begun to change. He closed his golden vampire eyes and took several meditating breaths to calm down. When he finally looked at Wesley again, his intense brown eyes were back to normal.

"Sorry, you're right. We need to stay focused on finding her. When, and I mean _when, _Wolfram & Hart finds out that she's here, they will be hunting for her too, if they haven't started already. We need to find Katie before they do."


	11. I hate him

Chapter 11 I hate him

Katie had managed to find 35 cents lying on the ground and walked to the payphone in the subway station. She reached in her back pocket for the business card, but cursed to herself when she remembered it was in her old knapsack that she'd left in Angel's apartment. She had carried that bag for longer then she cared to remember. _I'll find a way to sneak back there and get it._ She tried to remember the phone number, but her memory failed her. Instead, she reached for the attached phonebook.

"Lawyers…ok, got it. Wolfram and Hart…" Her finger skimmed the page, but failed to locate the business. She flipped the page and found a full page ad for the law office. _Wow, they're big time! _She dialed the number and waited for an answer.

_ "Wolfram & Hart," _came a voice from the other end of the line.

"Could you please connect me with Marcus?" Katie hoped there was only one Marcus working there.

_"One moment please."_

Katie was put on hold and looked around. She wanted to be sure no one was following her.

_"This is Marcus."_

"Marcus, hi. It's Katie. Remember me from the beach?"

_"Hi, Katie. Of course I remember you! Now what can I do for you? Change your mind about that talk?"_

"Sort of. Could you do me a big favor, though?"

_"I'll see what I can do. What's up?"_

"I was wondering if you could come pick me up. I'm in the subway station at 27th and Sweet Briar."

_"Sure. I was just about to go for lunch anyway."_

"Thank you so much!" Katie felt her voice crack with relief.

_"Are you alright? You sound funny. Is everything ok?"_

"Yeah, I'm fine."

_"Ok, hold tight. I'll be there soon."_

Katie hung up the phone and sighed. She still didn't fully trust Marcus, but he was the only person she could turn to at the moment. If nothing else, he would listen. She slid down the wall and waited for her new friend to show up.

* * *

__ "He threw you out?" Marcus repeated in sympathetic disbelief. "He just threw you out on the street without giving you a chance to explain yourself. That's just wrong!"

Katie and Marcus were sitting in the big comfy chairs in his office back at Wolfram & Hart. Katie just nodded. She had explained everything to him.

"I wasn't planning on hurting Wesley. I just panicked and freaked out on him. Once I started, I lost control," Katie looked up through tears. "I'm not a bad person; I just can't help myself sometimes. I was so afraid that he was going to turn Angel against me and end the relationship I had waited my entire…um…so long for."

"Honey, you can't deny who or what you are," Marcus leaned over and put his hand on Katie's knee. "It happens to all of us."

"He hates me now. But you know something? I despise him more. This isn't the first time Angel's turned his back on me in favor of a new 'family'." Marcus just sat there as Katie ranted.

"I hate him for what he did to our family. I hate him for what he did to me. I hate him for abandoning me when I needed him most. What I hate him for most of all is that all this time he's had his 'family'!"

"You hate him so much you want to kill him?" Marcus prompted. Katie looked up at him with shock.

"No, I don't want him dead. I couldn't do it even if I wanted to. He's too strong."

"Then what _do_ you want?"

"I want him abandoned by his own little family. I want them to turn and walk out of his life forever," Katie's eyes narrowed to match the vengeance in her voice. "I want him to be alone and miserable like I was for so long."

Marcus nodded his head. He could feel the wheels turning. _I'm sure the Senior Partners could use her. She may not be able to kill him herself, but with a little bit of help…_a plan was forming in Marcus' mind.

"So, you're a vampire too?" Katie asked, changing the subject and cutting into Marcus' thoughts.

"Well, kind of. It's a long story."

"Tell me?" Katie gave him her little innocent girl look that worked like a charm. This time was no exception.

"I'm sort of an in-between. I'm not totally human, but I'm not totally vampire either."

"Huh? How can that happen?"

"You know the whole process. Sire bites until the heart almost stops and then offers the child a taste of his or her own blood. Sometimes all it takes is a drop. I got a dried smear. A slayer dusted my sire before he could fully turn me."

"Wow, that's interesting, and sad in a way."

"As a result, I never really died, but just stopped living. I don't have a heartbeat, but my brain still functions. I don't have fangs and vampire strength, but do have slightly heightened senses. I can eat regular food, but can still enjoy a real Bloody-Mary or two."

"What about the sun and crosses and stuff?"

"Crosses and holy water, etc. make me nervous but don't hurt me; they just give me a rash. I don't burst into flames in daylight, but I do get very nasty sunburn pretty quickly."

"Wow, I've never heard of anything like that."

"I guess I'm a pretty rare case," Marcus said with a laugh. Katie noticed a twinkle in his eye and smiled. "Speaking of cases, I have one that you might be able to help me with."

"Sure!" Katie said enthusiastically. She'd love to help him out after he was so nice to her. "Just give me the details." Marcus smiled at the girl's spunk. What a better ally than the betrayed little girl for whom Angel must have a soft spot?

"Well, I will have to discuss it further with the Senior Partners, but I'm sure they will support me and be thrilled to have you on board," he stood and offered his hand. Katie stood up and shook it with a smile of pride. Even before knowing any details, she already felt like she was going to be part of something very important, and she loved that feeling. "I'm sorry, but I have to go to a meeting now. It was great talking with you, Miss Katie. Keep in touch."

"I sure will. Thank you for listening." Katie checked her cheap plastic watch as she exited the office. _6 o'clock__! I spent all afternoon talking with Marcus! _Time sure flies sometimes, even if one is immortal. The problem now was that she had no where to go. No where to stay. She was used to sleeping on the streets, but she had all of her essentials in that old knapsack. She wandered down to the front lobby and asked the receptionist to use the phone.

_"Hi, it's Cordelia. I'm not home right now, but leave a message…"_

Katie sighed and hung up the phone. She wasn't sure she should do what she planned to do next, but it didn't look like she had much of a choice. Hopefully Cordelia would listen and understand.

__


	12. We'll wait

Chapter 12 We'll wait

Back at Angel Investigations, the two men had spent the early part of the afternoon searching for a strategy to find Katie.

"Did she leave anything here that could give us a clue?" Wesley asked from behind his computer screen.

"Something like this perhaps?" Angel walked in the room holding up a dirty, beat-up knapsack. "Katie brought this with her when she first came."

"Exactly!" Wesley smiled. "Now open up and let the clue hunting begin." Angel handed him the bag, but then hesitated and took it back again.

"I don't know, Wes. I feel a little weird going through her only real possession."

"But Angel…" Wesley had to admit that he was feeling a pull at his conscience. "I know what you mean." he finally relented.

"Like, a woman's bag is very private and personal," Angel mumbled.

"Let's wait until Cordelia gets here. She'll do it," Wesley offered. Angel just grinned and nodded in agreement. If anyone got enjoyment from snooping, it was Cordy.

"What about me?" Cordelia asked as she sauntered in through the office door. "What have you boys been up too…?" She paused as she surveyed the destruction that had not been tended to yet. "A second though, I really don't want to know, unless…" She blanched. "…are you still Angel or are you evil now? Because if you're Angelus, I think I'll take my leave now."

"That all depends," Angel replied with his evil grin. "Would Angelus leave you alive long enough to go snooping through this?" He held up the bag. Cordelia let out the breath she was holding and took the bag.

"Don't you ever do that again," she muttered as she shot a glare in Angel's direction and then examined the cloth in her hands. "Isn't this Katie's?"

"Yes, you are correct," Wesley confirmed. "We'll fill you in on the day's events, but you might want to sit down first.

"…are you sure we're talking about the same Katie?" Cordelia asked in disbelief as Wesley told the tale. "The Katie I know would never have done anything like that."

"That's what I thought too, as she was pinning Wes up against the wall," Angel offered. "And now we have to find her before she can do any more damage. We found her bag, but Wes and I feel a little weird…care to do the honors?"

Cordelia started to shuffle through the bag, but something on the floor by Angel's feet caught her eye instead. She knelt down and picked up a white business card.

"Wolfram & Hart, sound familiar?"

Angel and Wesley looked at each other and then back to Cordelia. "Got a business suit guys?" Angel asked. They were going to have to go straight to the belly of the beast. Wesley and Cordelia rushed back to their apartments as Angel retreated to his apartment.

An hour later, Wesley parked Angel's Plymouth in the underground parking garage of the what Cordelia referred to as 'Hell Incorporated' and the three professionally dressed employees of Angel Investigations entered the building.

"Hi, my name is Cordelia Chase. These are my associates, Wesley Wyndam-Pryce," Cordelia beamed at the receptionist with perfected ease. This was the same speech she gave to clients. "and…uh… Roger Berklestien." She stammered, just realizing that using Angel's real name would certainly alert someone to their presence.

"We're to see Marcus," Wesley picked up where Cordelia had left off. He showed the receptionist the business card.

"I see," the receptionist muttered as she typed into a computer. "Do you have an appointment with Mr. Cole?"

_Marcus Cole, that's an interesting name,_ Cordelia thought. "No, he just told us to stop by anytime." She flashed another one of her pearly smiles.

"I'm afraid Mr. Cole is in a meeting right now. If you would like to make an appointment…"

"We'll wait," Angel said, breaking his silence.

"It's an urgent matter," Wesley explained at the receptionist's startled expression. "A very important client and a very short timeframe, you know…" He paused after feeling Cordelia's heel slam down on top of his foot. "…right, we'll just wait here."

They made their way over to the law firm's waiting area and sank into the comfortable chairs.

"We need to get ourselves some of these," Cordelia commented.

"We should, but with what money? This is an international conglomerate," Wesley replied.

"Roger Berklestien?" Angel muttered at his alias.

"I'm sorry, it was a spur of the moment thing," Cordelia defended. "Roger."

"Yes, Berklestien Investigations does have a nice ring to it," Wesley added with a smirk. Angel just rolled his eyes. He started people-watching and froze when he saw a familiar face staring back at him. Angel wasn't the only one who was people-watching. He saw Angel and Angel saw him.

"Guys, time to go," Angel said standing up.

"But…" Wesley said in confusion. He and Cordelia stood to follow Angel.

"SECURITY!" yelled a familiar voice. Wesley and Cordelia looked to its source and saw none other than Lindsey McDonnell.

"Yup, time to go," Cordelia said as the three rushed out of the building.


	13. Bad Dennis, no biscuit!

A/N: Thank you to all who've reviewed...including my non-Angel fanatic friend. I may just convert you yet, though (like with Alias? ;-) ) Sorry it's been so long since my last update, but life as been crazy busy. I can't believe I'm already on Ch. 13 and there is still so much story left to go! And now, the adventure continues...

* * *

Chapter 13 Bad Dennis, no biscuit!

"So now what?" Cordelia asked when they pulled away from Wolfram & Hart. She stifled a yawn, trying to cover up her exhaustion.

"Now," Angel said, noticing the tired expressions of his friends. "Both of you go and get a couple hours rest. It's been a trying day for all of us."

"But what will you do?" Wesley stifled his yawn. They were horribly contagious things.

"I'll go check with a couple of my contacts and see if I can dig anything up." Angel desperately tried to no let his worry show. He didn't fool Wesley.

"We _will_ find her, Angel. You can bet on that."

"Hey guys?" Cordelia asked.

"Are you having a vision?"

"Are you ok?"

Cordelia looked at the concerned expressions on her friends' faces and couldn't help but smile.

"I feel the love. I really do. Thanks guys, but no I'm not having a vision. It's just a disturbing thought." Cordelia paused for effect. "Angel, Katie is you're kid sister, right?" Angel nodded. "And you sired her as a vampire."

_Oh good God, I know where this is going,_ Angel thought.

"So that means in a way, you're Katie's brother _and_ her father. Or in other words, she is your sister _and_ your _daughter_!" Wesley caught on and wrinkled his nose at the thought.

"Well, we'll all just move into a rundown shack and call ourselves the Clampets!" Cordelia said, followed by silence. "Hello? Get it? The Beverly Hillbillies? The whole 'I am my own grandpa' thing?" At the continuing blank stares she just rolled her eyes. "You two really are culture rejects, aren't you?"

Angel cleared his throat.

"Excuse me, oh Undead One, _20th century_ culture rejects," Cordelia corrected with a grin.

_Ugh, what a mess_, Angel sighed as he parked in front of the office.

* * *

Across town, Katie waited until dusk and then set out for Cordelia's apartment. It was late in the evening when she finally arrived at Cordy's doorstep. After rooting around the front door, she found the spare key and unlocked the door. 

"Cordelia? Anybody home?" Katie went to enter the darkened apartment when she felt herself being shoved back outside. _But I've been here before. Cordy invited me in._ She then realized that the invisible force was not the same as the one that prevents vampires from entering homes unwelcome. This felt more like hands.

"Dennis? It's me, Katie." She felt the felt the force let up and made her way through the door. She then felt herself flying backwards out the door and landed on her bottom on the sidewalk.

"Hey!" She cried indignantly. "That wasn't very nice. Bad Dennis, no biscuit!"

She brushed herself off and forcefully entered the apartment, ignoring the frantic invisible grabs and shoves. She settled herself in the recliner and said to the air, "We need to talk. I know you somehow must have heard from Cordy what I did to Wesley this morning. I'm sorry for that and I'm glad he wasn't hurt. I promise I won't do that to our friend. Just to prove it, here," Katie pulled a wooden stake from her jacket pocket. She had fashioned on the way over and had intended to give it to Cordy for insurance, but Dennis was proving to be the problem right now.

"Consider this a piece offering. If you feel I am threatening Cordelia, you know what to do with this. But I trust you to trust me and not stake me immediately." The stake floated out of her hand and wavered above her chest for a moment before being placed on the far end table.

"I'm glad we've come to an understanding," Katie smiled at the thought of talking to the ghost. She laid back in the recliner and decided to take a short nap until Cordelia came home.

"Dennis?" Cordelia asked from her front entrance a short while later. "What did I tell you about leaving the door unlocked and the lights on…?" She froze in mid-sentence as she saw a familiar figure sitting in her living room deeply engrossed in the latest issue of Marie Claire. "…and about letting psycho vampires into our house?" Katie looked up at the older girl.

"Hello, Cordy," she said with an innocent smile. "How was your day?"

"Y-y-young l-lady, you have some m-major explaining to do!" Cordelia stammered.

"Don't worry, Cordy, I'm not going to hurt you. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't," she nodded towards the stake on the table. It levitated and waved in front of her. "Dennis and I have an understanding. He doesn't hurt me, but if he even thinks that I'm threatening you, I'm staked immediately. I hope that's ok."

"I have to call Angel," Cordelia made a dash for the telephone.

"NO!" Katie leapt from her chair and caught Cordelia's arm. She leapt backward as she felt the stake pressed against her chest. She held up her hands. "Sorry!" She took a deep breath and pleaded. "No, Cordy, please don't call Angel. Don't tell him I'm here. He'll kill me!"

"Angel wouldn't do that," Cordelia reassured the girl.

"He already said he would. I believe 'If I see you here again, I will dust you' were his exact words," Cordelia could see the genuine fear in the girl's eyes. She also knew that Angel usually didn't make idle threats.

"He's been looking for you, but maybe we should let him cool down for a day before we tell him," Cordelia relented.

"Oh, thank you so much!" Katie was grateful. "You have no idea what a relief this is. Knowing that I have at least one friend in the world, I mean." Cordelia could see tears brimming in Katie's eyes. Besides, what could one day hurt, and she had Dennis' protection.

"Now, just because I'm not telling Angel right away doesn't mean I'm Mrs. Nice-girl. Now spill, and tell me exactly why you were trying to kill my friend," Cordelia said with a glare.

"We should sit down," Katie sat down in the recliner. Cordelia chose the couch. "Ok, it started like this…"

  



	14. You bet we do!

_A.N. I apologize for the lack of updating. My computer has given me some major headaches. Those have been resolved so hopfully I'll be updating more often. Thanks again for the reviews and comments. It's you that keep me going! _

* * *

Chapter 14 You bet we do!

"Well, then," Cordelia said after hearing the day's events from the vampire girl's point of view. Katie had left out the part about going to see Marcus since she had overheard something earlier about the Angel Investigations crew not liking Wolfram & Hart for some reason. Cordelia was surprised to at the sympathy she felt for Angel's sister, and she was sure Angel would understand if Katie talked to him. "I believe that you should be telling Angel this, not me."

"But…" Katie protested.

"I know what he said, but I also know him," the older girl interrupted. "He may be emotionally challenged, but he's not uncaring. I know he will understand. He may not trust you, but your argument may change his view of you a bit."

Katie starred at her hand as she played with her fingers. _She's right, but can I bring myself to face him again?_ Katie nodded.

"Alright, come on," Cordelia stood up and held out her hand.

"What? Now? Tonight?" Katie felt a wave of fear wash over her and fought back the pressing violent streak that accompanied it. _No, NO! Get a grip, Katie! Calm down, calm down, calm down_, she chanted to herself. She wasn't ready to see Angel, not yet. She heard a faint ringing sound, but ignored it was she fought to stay calm.

"No time like the present," Cordelia said with a smile. "Go get your coat." The ringing continued.

"Ok," Katie said hesitantly. "Are you going to answer that?"

"Answer what?"

"Your cell phone, can't you hear it ringing?" Katie asked as she grabbed her coat off the rack by the door.

"But I don't have a cell phone," Cordelia insisted. "Your brother…er…sire…er…whatever, refuses to get a company plan. He's technologically impaired that way." She rolled her eyes. "Besides, it sounds like it's coming from you."

"I don't have one," Katie said, confused. She searched her coat pockets and pulled out a silver Nokia flip-phone. "What the…?"

"Answer it," Cordelia mouthed.

"Hello?"

_"Katie, its Marcus."_

"Oh, hi."

_"Sorry if I startled you. We needed a way to get into contact with you so I slipped this in you coat before you left."_

"Quite alright, what's up?"

_"I talked to my supervisor and he wants to meet with you right away. Can you come in now?"_

"Ah, sure. My friend, Cordelia, can give me a ride," She gave Cordelia a pleading look and the older girl nodded.

_"Um, ok, but can you have her drop you off at the park and walk over? Not to sound like James Bond or anything, but this is on the top-secret side. You understand."_

"Sure, no problem. See you soon."

"Who was that?" Cordelia asked curiously when Katie closed the phone and slipped it back in her pocket.

"Ma…my friend. Someone I met while in town," Katie covered. "He needs me. Family problems, I think."

"Family troubles? Yikes, I've been through that. Let's get going!"

Katie smiled at the seer's enthusiasm and that she was saved from facing Angel tonight.

* * *

"We appreciate you coming in so quickly, Katie," Marcus said as he escorted the girl into one of Wolfram & Hart's conference rooms. She took in the large table with numerous chairs and the large plasma television hanging on the far wall. The room was empty of people except for a gray-haired balding man sitting at the head of the table. They crossed the room and the man stood up. "This is my boss, Mr. Holland Manners. He is vice-president of the Special Projects division of the law firm. Mr. Manners, this is Katherine O'Connor, Angel's sister." Holland offered his hand with a smile.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Miss O'Connor." Katie shook the hand hesitantly. "Mr. Cole has told me many great things about you which lead me to believe that you will be a valuable asset to this project."

"Pleasure to meet you too, Mr. Manners. How did you know my last name, Mar…Mr. Cole?" She asked, turning toward Marcus. "I know I didn't tell you since I never use it." This concerned her.

"Actually, Miss O'Connor…," Holland started.

"Please, call me Katie."

"Very well, Katie. We've been keeping a close watch on you for quite some time now."

"How do you mean?"

"We have done extensive research on Angel and those connected with him. We know he had a sister once. We were hoping to find a girl who could pass as Kathy in a similar situation as your own. She could befriend the group and we could gain valuable insight into their activities," Marcus explained. "We had sent men to track you once you came to Los Angeles and we had scheduled a meeting to bring you on board the night you went to Angel Investigations. Unfortunately, Angel got to you before we did. It was pure luck that I found you that morning on the beach."

Katie sat speechless as Marcus continued on about how the law firm had traced her across the entire country ever since she had come to the Untied States. This was very unsettling.

"Once I got talking with you," Marcus continued. "I realized that you were better than a double; you're the real thing. Angel's real sister!"

"Ok, let me have a moment to get over the creepy factor of this situation," Katie shuddered for a moment. "What connection does my brother have to you? I mean, why go through all of this work and research?"

"Your brother claims to be 'fighting the good fight' nowadays, correct?" Holland asked. Katie nodded in confirmation. "While it is true that we sometimes represent clients of questionable backgrounds, we fight using the judicial system like the rest of the American public. Angel hinders our efforts by taking a more direct approach. He doesn't wait to hear the evidence or whether a jury finds the client guilt or innocent. He's been known to threaten and even murder our clients before they are able to stand trial. Instead of being brought to justice, they are put to death. Do you follow me?"

Katie sat there for a moment to let it all sink in. _My brother is vigilanty. There has to be another side to this._ She could see Angel having an impatient violent streak and taking matters into his own hands. On the flip side, she could not see him murdering in cold-blood and for no good reason; not since he's gotten his soul back anyway. _For now, _she thought to herself, _I'll reserve judgment._

"Yes, I follow. He's a problem. Where do I come in?"

"First of all, he must never know you were here or that you've had contact with us," Marcus said, clasping his hands on the table. "You have to go back and get Angel and his associates to trust you again. This will help us gain information on any future attacks against the firm."

"Reconnaissance, that sounds easy enough. Anything else?" Katie was slightly disappointed that her mission wasn't more hands-on.

"Let me ask you this," Marcus leaned across the table and looked Katie directly in the eye. "Do you still hate Angel as much as you did before?"

Anger flashed in the vampire girl's eyes. "He turned his back on me again and took the word of his sniveling friend, Wesley, over me; over his own flesh and blood." A slight smile tugged at the corners of Marcus' mouth. He leaned back in his chair.

"He threatened to kill me!" Katie stood up and her voice turned into an angry growl. "You know what? I think I'm going to return that threat and get him before he can get me. Kill or be killed, right guys?" She met the gaze of both men. The lawyers looked at each other, satisfied with the vampire's answer.

"I'm glad you feel that way, Miss Katie," Holland smiled broadly. "It's nice to know we share the same goals. That will be Phase II which we will fill you in on later."

"I'm happy that we can help each other, then," Katie evilly smiled back as she sat back down. "He'll learn that Hell hath no fury like a 250-something-year-old-vampire-sister scorned…again and again!"

"Now let's talk about compensation…," Marcus slid a folder across the desk for Katie to inspect. "Do we have a deal?" he asked a couple of minutes later.

She looked up at him and grinned. "You bet we do!"


	15. Time for Plan B

A.N. Sorry about the lack of updating. Fanfic wouldn't let me upload anything from home, and school was being dumb about letting us online until they checked all of our computers for anti-virus crap. Of course my dorm was the last on the list. Anyway, there are a few new chapters up and I'm already working on the next.

p.s. thanks for all the reviews!

* * *

Chapter 15 Time for Plan B

"Angel?" Cordelia called into the silent office. She had decided to drop by after leaving Katie at the park. She was about to check down in Angel's basement apartment when she heard someone clear his throat in the dim lighting.

"What are you doing here at this hour?" Angel asked, looking up from his antique novel. He sat up in his leather desk chair and pulled his feet off of the desktop. "Did you have a vision?"

"No," Cordelia shook her head. "More like a confession."

"Huh?"

"I saw Katie tonight…" Cordelia started.

"WHAT?! Where?"

"At my apartment after we come back from Wolfram & Hart. She was sitting there when I walked through the door."

Angel jumped up while throwing his book down on the desk and rushed over to Codry's side. "Are you ok? Did she hurt you? Or even threaten you?"

"No, I'm fine."

"I knew she was bad news. I should have staked her when I had the chance," Angel said as if to himself. He leaned against the desk with his arms crossed and shook his head.

"Angel, Katie is not the problem here. You are."

Angel looked up shocked. "What?"

"You only see the bad side in your sister. She wasn't there to threaten me. She was there because she needed a friend and had no one else to turn to."

"But she's a…"

"Vampire? Yeah, I got that memo already. She even trusted Denis enough to offer him a stake just in case something happened, to protect me from herself."

"But what she tried to do to Wes, what she could do to you…Cordelia, we can't trust her!"

"Angel, she told me the whole story about what happened here. You couldn't possibly understand how sorry she is for the whole incident."

The vampire stood with his usual expressionless face.

"Angel, talk to her!" Cordelia pleaded. "You have to talk to her and let her explain. She's scared enough of you as it is."

"I guess I could if she comes to me…"

"You have to go to her. I mean, you threatened to dust her if you ever saw her again. That isn't exactly a 'welcome home, I'm here to talk anytime' invitation. She looked like I had told her to walk down the road at noon when I said she needed to see you."

"And how do you know that she's not just playing you? Darla used to be very good at that," Angel said cautiously.

"Because she loves you. You are her brother and sire. You are the only family she has left. I believe Katie wants to do good in the world, especially if it wins your approval. That girl would walk through fire for you, Angel. I could see it in her eyes."

Angel stood in silence and looked the seer in the eyes. Cordelia really did believe what she had just argued. They shared a moment of quiet understanding until pain flashed across Cordelia's face.

"AAGHHHH!" She screamed as Angel caught her and sat her down on the desktop.

"Easy, easy, shhh," he said as he rocked the quivering brunette back and forth. She finally took a deep breath and opened her eyes.

"Oh my god, Angel," Cordelia said looking into his chocolate intense eyes. "It's them again."

"Who is?"

"Those demons. The Thermopoli demons, and Simon is still with them. It looked like they where conducting a ritual or something. He was tied to a strange-looking alter. Angel, you have to hurry!"

"I'll go call Wesley."

"No time for that! I'll go with you," Cordelia made a valiant attempt to get up, but dizziness and a pounding migraine forced her to sit back down.

Angel grabbed a few weapons and bounded for the door when he nearly collided with his sister.

"Angel, we need to talk, right now," Katie said with an air of summoned courage.

"Not now, I have to go."

"Where's Wesley?" She asked noticing that Angel and Cordelia were alone. She could tell that Cordy wasn't going anywhere soon.

"Not here. I don't know," Angel said sidestepping around Katie and into the hall.

"Then I'm coming with you!" In a flash almost took quick for Cordelia to see, Katie grabbed a pair of Sias (three-pronged daggers) which she shoved in the side belt loops of her jeans, picked up a short sword and followed Angel.

"No no," Angel said as he jumped in the car. "You can come, but there's no way I'm letting you fight!"

"Seeing that you're all alone, I don't think you'll have much of a choice, bro," Katie replied with a mischievous grin. "Now tell me, who or what are we fighting?"

* * *

"How many do you see?" Angel mouthed to Katie who had crept up to the rafters of the old warehouse. She held up two open hands to indicate 'ten'. Angel nodded and turned his attention back to scene in front of him. They did indeed seem to be conducting a ritual with the same man, Simon, appearing to be a sacrifice. He was standing next to the breaker box and cut the power. Just as before, the Thermopoli demons would not be able to see the two vampires in the dark. Unfortunately, they seemed to have learned from their past mistake. The lights cut out for only a second and then came back on along with the sound of a generator. _Damn it_, Angel thought to himself. Both their element of surprise and darkness advantages were gone. Not to mention that they were outnumbered five to one. _If we abort, they will still catch us. This is going to be a tough fight._

"You're smart, but let's see how fast you are!" Angel shouted as he bolted from his hiding spot and took out the closest demon. They were very fast. In an instant, the nine remaining demons were on top of him. Angel struggled to free his arms so he could use his weapons, but he was near powerless as the demons continued to dog pile on top of him.

Katie sat motionless on her perch high above the scene. The plan was for her to rescue Simon while the demons were focused on Angel. She looked over at the man who suddenly disappeared in a silver mist. Angel, on the other hand, looked like he was in serious trouble. _I guess it's time for Plan B_, she thought, _although, I have no clue what Plan B is._ She had left the sword at the door since she couldn't climb with it, so Katie moved her hands to her hips, took a deep breath for focus, and launched herself off of the beam. She landed on top of the demon heap and started hacking away. She lost grip on one sia and lost it in one demon's chest. She continued slicing demon flesh with the other while throwing demons off of her brother with her empty hand.

Angel, stunned to find himself free, pulled a dagger from the sheath taped to his ankle and joined in the fight. The demons were amazingly resilient and were still fighting strong with six left. Angel and Katie found themselves separated and their backs to the wall with four against Angel and two against the young vampire. Angel was able to bury his ax in one demon's skull, but it was pulled away from his grasp as the three remaining demons pinned him to the wall. He knocked one away with a swift kick, but still found himself quite immobile.

Katie darted around the clutches of the demon pair and towards Angel. She picked up his dropped dagger and stuck it in the throat of the demon that came up behind her. She then threw her last sia and gave the second demon a new third eye. Both of her demons had been taken care of, but a groan from the other side of the warehouse proved the Angel was still struggling. One of the demons had pulled out a wooden stake and was ready to drive it home into Angel's chest. Katie grabbed Angel's ax out of a demon corpse, but she knew that even she would be unable to clear the distance before the demon staked her brother. She spied a chunk of concrete lying on the floor. She ran over and flipped the head of the ax to the floor.

"Yo Rhinoface! You suck at being goalie!" The girl shouted as she dribbled the block like a puck. The demon turned his head slightly in surprise. _One, two, three_. She swept back and made a slap shot that imbedded the chunk into the side of the demon's head. It dropped the stake and collapsed to the floor. The other two demons decided to take off running. Angel just stared at Katie, dumbfounded.

"What?" She said with a laugh. "I played a little hockey in my day!"

They shared a smile and then took off after the escaping demons. Angel easily snapped the neck of one and Katie took a mighty swing with the ax towards the last one. Its head rolled across the floor into the shadows. Angel and Katie picked up their scattered weapons and surveyed the damage around them.

"Simon disappeared," Katie finally said. "I don't know what happened."

"It doesn't matter now. You, on the other hand…I am impressed," Angel said, watching as his sister wiped off her daggers and returned them to her belt loops. "Where did you learn to fight with sias like that?"

Katie looked at the ground and a hint of pink crossed her pale cheeks. "I think I watched Daredevil too many times. I would practice the fighting scenes with Elektra over and over again."

Angel gave a chuckle and put his arm around his sister. "You really are full of surprises, aren't you?"

"Yup," Katie smiled up at her big brother and gave his waist a squeeze.


	16. A Vampire's Anthem

Chapter 16 A Vampire's Anthem

"What do you think you're doing?" Angel asked with a touch of annoyance. He never liked anyone messing with his belongings, especially his beloved car.

"I'm looking for a good station," Katie replied from the passenger seat with her hand on the car's stereo dial. "Driving through L.A. on such a nice night with the top down with no music? That's just plain wrong!"

Angel and Katie agreed to have the much needed heart-to-heart, but the warehouse was not the greatest atmosphere. Instead, Angel suggested they visit the beach. Being a vampire, Angel rarely felt the need to go to the shore, but now it just seemed right.

"Don't you people have any country stations? Back East, there were at least four or five everywhere I was," Katie said in exasperation.

"Country?" Angel shot Katie a doubtful look.

"Yeah, you need to broaden your horizons, and besides, it sure beats Barry Manilow," Katie teased. At Angel's horrified expression, she continued. "Don't think I can't hear you singing in the shower from the living room. I used 'singing' in the loosest way possible, of course. Ah! Here we go!" Katie found her country station and turned the volume up a notch. They listened in silence until Katie heard the first few guitar cords to her favorite song and turned the volume up to near deafening decibels for the two vampires with extra sensitive hearing.

"Oh my god! I love this song! It could be a vampire's anthem or something," Katie shouted and started singing along with the lyrics.

"Uh, what is it?" Angel asked turning the volume down a few notches in order to hear his sister.

Katie rolled her eyes. "_When the Sun Goes Down_ by Kenny Chesney and Uncle Kracker."

"Who? What do you mean by a 'vampire's anthem'? It's talking about being tan and going to the sunny beach," retorted Angel, who still remained in the dark.

"Just shut up and listen to the chorus. You'll see what I mean."

Angel paid close attention to the lyrics and heard Katie's voice singing along with the radio.

_When the sun goes down, we'll be groovin' _

_ When the sun goes down, feelin' alright_

_ When the sun sinks down over the water_

_ Everything gets hotter when the sun goes down_

"Ok, I guess I kind of see your point," Angel relented.

"Sure you do," was the sarcastic reply from the passenger seat. "…_sleepin' off the night before 'cuz when the sun goes down we'll be back for more…_"

Katie's voice filled the air and Angel had to admit, his sister had quite a set of pipes. She obviously inherited the musical gene in the family. While still not convinced on the country music thing, Angel enjoyed hearing the girl sing as he continued down the boulevard towards the beach.

"Come on, big brother. Sing the last chorus with me," Katie interrupted his thoughts.

"No, I can't…I shouldn't…" he stammered in protest.

"You know you want to. Now do it!" she insisted.

"_When the sun goes down, we'll be groovin'…" _Angel sang in his gravelly unsure voice.

"That's it! Now let it all out!"

_"When the sun goes down, feelin' alright…"_

"_When the sun sinks down over the water…" _Katie joined him and together they belted out the remainder of the song.

"_Everything gets hotter when the sun goes down!"_

"You know something?" Katie said when the song ended. "I don't think you sing too badly. I think you were just trying to sing the wrong style."

"Uh," Angel wasn't sure if he sure be insulted or not.

"I think country is your thing," Katie continued enthusiastically.

"Oh really," he said skeptically.

"Really! We could get you a guitar, some Wrangler jeans, some western boots, a black hat, and maybe even big belt buckle…"

Angel paled as Katie rambled on with her big plan to make Angel a country star.

"…although belt buckles are pretty expensive, unless you win one. When's the last time you've seen a bull?"

"A bull?" Angel squeaked.

"Of course! That's the ultimate extreme sport, and you have an advantage over the other competitors. You're stronger than a human, and you can't be killed. If the bull steps on you, you heal fast. If you get gored by a horn, you won't die!"

"Enough! I'm not going to be a country singer, so forget it. I'll just stick with Manilow in the shower," Angel said, hoping to stop his sister's imagination before she actually started acting on those plans. He pulled into a parking space along the pier and got out. "We're here."

"Oh well. So much for your inevitable stardom," Katie sighed as she closed her door, and then smiled. "I guess I'll just have to be content with being related to a superhero."

Within minutes, the two vampires were seated on the soft sand and gazing at the moonbeams as they reflected off the water.

"Well, what do you want to know?" Angel asked after Katie inquired about Angel and Angelus' unlife.

"Everything."

"Two hundred plus years could take a while to explain."

"That's ok. I have eternity, and so do you. Now spill."

* * *

A.N. I was driving down the road one day and heard that awesome song on the radio for about the tenth time that day and it sunddenly dawned on me about how it could be a vampire theme song. Dumb or not, I just had to put it in. Oh, and Angel in a cowboy hat and Wranglers...mmmmmm!


	17. You're all I have left

Chapter 17 You're all I have left

"This Buffy girl must have meant a lot to you," Katie said a while later.

"She was everything," Angel replied sadly. "I had to get away from her. We couldn't risk turning me back into Angelus again."

Katie sat in silence as she witnessed the quiet anguish momentarily cross her brother's face. "And after I'd been in L.A. for a while feeling sorry for myself, my very existence was turned upside-down by a crazy Irish man, well half-man half-demon named Doyle. He set me on the path I'm on now and gave me a mission to work towards. After he sacrificed himself to save me and many other half-demons from the Scourge, I was determined not to let him die in vain."

Angel went on to describe how Cordelia became involved and several cases they had done. "Ok, you know my story. Now it's your turn," he side with a smirk.

Katie gazed out over the ocean as she began to speak. "As you know, it all started that night you came back home after you died. I don't know how long it was before I woke up and realized that I had changed. I was scared and confused, and was surprised at how little the sight of Mama and Papa disturbed me. All I could think about how hungry I was and how abandoned I felt."

Angel gazed at his sister and lowered his head in shame. _I wouldn't have left if I'd known. Even Angelus didn't abandon his little family._

"…so I wandered around Europe during the next century, moved on to Asia for a while and finally decided to reside in Northern Africa for several decades. I stayed there until the Nazis invaded and I was placed in a concentration camp. You wouldn't believe what went on in those hells." Katie's eyes glazed over as her memories came rushing back. "I somehow managed to stay out of the daylight, but once my fellow prisoners found out what I was, they didn't run or fear me. They begged me to feed off of them to put an end to their misery and torment. Imagine that, Angel. People preferred to be killed by a vampire rather than stay alive!"

Angel had heard rumors of similar instances, but never heard anything first hand.

"I finally gathered enough desperate people and even turned a few in order to take out the guards and escape. I found myself on board a cargo ship bound for America. I wandered the streets for a few more decades until the government really started cracking down on us "street kids" and I was taken into the foster system. Try explaining to a few adults that you are highly allergic to the sun, need blood to survive, and were around when their great-great-great-great…you get the idea…grandparents were alive. It didn't go over too well.

"So you killed them?" Angel inquired, remembering the articles Wesley had compiled on her.

"What? No! I ran away," Katie said, shocked. "I mean, yes I did kill people, but I was choosy. I feed off of only those who never cared about anyone and those who threatened me. Yes, I did burn down that Chicago family's home. They kept trying to exorcise me to 'get the demon out'. I tried running away, but they always seemed to find me. They were evil, Angel. I wouldn't have done that if they just left me alone. The police were closing in on me after running away and I was almost caught in the dawn's light. I never killed anyone for no good reason! Never!" She started sobbing. "I'm not a bad person. You have to believe me. I just need help! That's why I came to you. You're all I have left."

Angel reached over and took her hand in his and pulled her closer.

"I don't know what's wrong with me," she continued to sob into his broad comforting shoulder. "I mean, I'm a vampire for Pete's sake! I don't have a soul like you, yet I still feel remorse when I feed off of humans. Every other vampire I've known couldn't care less. What's wrong with me?" Angel felt her small body shake as she cried in his strong embrace. She suddenly seemed so small, young, and vulnerable. She reminded Angel more of his dear sweet Katherine than Katie ever had before.

"Shh," he said quietly as he rocked her back and forth and stroked her silky brunette hair. Katie finally quieted down and Angel tilted her head up to look her in the eyes. "Someone wise- ruthless and evil, but very wise- once told me something that I will never forget. 'What we once were informs all that we have become. The same love will infect our hearts, even if they no longer beat. Simple death won't change that.' Kathy was a very good person. You may not have her soul, but you do have some of her spirit in you, Katie."

"But I've tried to be like her, like the girl I once was, but I never ever could."

"Kathy is dead, just like Liam is dead. Those people, the people we once were, died the night we were turned. Katie and Angel can never be Kathy and Liam. Me, I think I'm a better 'person' now than Liam could ever have been. Kathy was sweet and innocent, but timid and shy. You bring a fiery spirit to those traits and I believe you can do greater good now than Kathy could have," Angel let out a sigh. "I love you. You are my sister and my child. No matter what, I love you, Katherine O'Connor," he choked on his last words as he fought back his own tears that threatened to join those of Katie.

"I know," she whispered. After a few minutes of silence, she composed herself and added, "I haven't been completely forthcoming with you. I met a man named Marcus, a Wolfram & Hart lawyer. I'm part of a big plan to bring you down…"


	18. A girl’s prerogative

Chapter 18 A girl's prerogative

"Well, I guess tonight is the night," Katie said as she looked around the apartment for what could be her last time. She felt an uneasiness sweep over her and was beginning to feel sick to her stomach.

It had been three months since Katie and Angel talked on the beach. Katie continued to report to Marcus on details about cases that Angel Investigations was taking care of. What the Wolfram & Hart lawyers didn't know was all of her reconnaissance information was only correct enough to keep their trust. After about two months of reconnaissance work which was considered Phase I, Mr. Manners and Marcus informed her that they were making preparations for Phase II. She was intimately involved with the plan's details and even miraculously passed an examination conducted by the firm's mind-readers. Using this information, the Angel team was able to create a counter attack. Both Phase II and the counter attack were going down tonight.

"You'll do fine. Everything will be fine," Angel smiled at her with love in his eyes. He knew she was scared. Frankly, so was he, though the vampire would never let that on. If anything even hinted that Katie had double crossed them, the full wrath of Wolfram & Hart would fall upon the both of them. Angel finally managed to convince Cordelia and Wesley to hide away for the night. Having them both there would hinder their plan and would also put the rest of his beloved family in danger. "You know what they say on stage. 'Break a leg.'"

"No," Katie giggled nervously and turned towards the building's entrance. "Get staked or lose a head."

* * *

"It's getting close to dawn, Katie. We're never going to find those demons from Cordy's vision before sun-up," Angel said, getting uneasy at the pinkness that was creeping into the sky. They were in a back alley with no near sewer entrances.

"But we're so close," the younger vampire whined in her preteen way. "I don't know why. I can just feel we're so close!"

"Katie, we need to get going, now!"

"Shh…" She looked around, senses on high alert. "They're here," she whispered. "They're all round us."

"Where?" Angel asked looking around.

"Good bye, big brother, I'm leaving you to fend for yourself." She started to run for the end of the alley.

"Huh? Wait! What are you talking about?" Angel called as he took off after her. _What is she doing? Where the hell was she going?! _This was not part of their plan.

"Now it's your turn to be abandoned!" she yelled over her shoulder. She stopped and faced her brother. "I hate you!" She screamed. "It's time you got what you deserve. I HATE YOU, ANGELUS!"

Angel just stood in shock in front of his sister. She had played him, Cordy, and Wesley all along. _Wes was right all along_… he started to think, but suddenly found himself surrounded by demon warriors armed to the teeth. "Katie!"

She stood there for a moment with an evil smirk crossing her face. She was the one in control. For the first time in her entire existence, _she_ could walk away from _him_, and walk away she did. She spun on her heel and turned the corner. She went to move around a large dumpster, but soon realized the sun had come up quicker than expected. She had no choice but to go back into the alley. _No! It's not supposed to be like this! _a voice screamed inside her head. She took a deep breath and entered the alley again half expecting to see her brother dead. She certainly wasn't expecting to run face first into Marcus Cole.

"Ugh! Oh!" she yelped in surprise.

"There you are, Miss Katie. You're missing the fun! Or, are you trying to sneak away?" His grin faded and he narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "You weren't going to play us, were you, Katie?" He knew she had told Angel their secret plan. The mind readers saw it, but they could still use Katie to kill Angel.

"Of course not!" Katie replied, shocked. She then felt her vampire features rise. She flashed a devilish-fanged grin. "I've already played you all like a fiddle!" She lunged at Marcus, who was surprising quick. After several dodges, she finally managed to tackle him and pin him to the ground.

"You said you weren't totally vampire. Let's see if a stake through the heart will dust you or just kill you!" She grabbed the stake in her coat pocket and drove it home. Suddenly she was sitting on the street with a small dust pile under her. "Oh good. It's less messy that way!"

She rushed off to the other end of the alley where vamped out Angel was holding his own surprisingly well against the onslaught of demons that Wolfram & Hart had acquired. Katie picked up a broadsword they had hid behind a trashcan a few days earlier. She also picked up the cell phone and called up Wesley. "Now would be a good time guys!"

"We're already getting them from above!" a British voice cracked on the other end.

Katie looked to the rooftops of the abandoned buildings and saw two figures with crossbows letting arrows fly at the demon army. She rushed into the fray flinging demons as she went. Soon, Katie found herself in the middle of the pack back-to-back with Angel.

"I thought you were leaving me to fend for myself," he gasped in between demon blows.

"Eh, it's a girl's prerogative to change her mind, right? Now come on, enough talk. Let's slay some demons!" She shouted as she handed him the broadsword, stole one from the nearest demon, thrust it through said demon's abdomen, and then sent its head rolling down the alley.

* * *

"Is that it? Did we get them all?" Katie asked a while later. She surveyed the carnage that lay all around them. Katie then took stock of her wounds. "Ow, I think I'm wounded," she mumbled to herself. She got a sword through the shoulder, a shallow slice across her stomach, and too many other cuts and bruises on her limbs to count. She was in pain, but she could already feel her wounds healing.

"I believe so," Angel replied wearily while holding his sword in one hand and clutching his stomach with the other, "for now anyway." His shirt was torn to shreds. Katie could see blood oozing out of numerous lacerations and soaking into the black fabric. He had been run through the side with a broadsword and was limping horribly on his right leg. They were battered and beaten, yet they had miraculously overcome the odds and were the ones left standing.

Angel looked up toward the rooftops and waved for Wesley and Cordelia to come down. A few moments later, they entered the alleyway and joined the bloody vampires. Suddenly, a strange wind started to blow. Katie could feel the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. In a flash, the alley was clear of all bodies and gore. It was as if nothing had happened there at all.

"Uh oh," Cordelia said, raising her crossbow.

"That's never a good sign," Angel muttered.

"Guys, we have company!" Wesley yelled as three more demon warriors joined the foursome. A little over six feet tall, they were clad in medieval-looking leather and chainmail suits. The only part not covered was their green faces. What was most striking about them was the glittering red jewel located between their silver eyes. Angel turned around and his face was filled with dread as he recognized the three approaching creatures.

"Oh, God no," he whispered. _There's no way we can defeat them, not after all that. _

"What's wrong? There are only three of them," Katie said defiantly. She was trying to put on a brave face, but could sense Angel's fear. To know that her brother, the great Champion, was fearful greatly unnerved her.

"They're Mohra demons, very powerful assassins for the Soldiers of Darkness," he replied as they came within close proximity. He vamped, drew his sword, and attacked. The others quickly followed suit.

Angel had fought one of these demons in the past and it nearly killed him. Even with his vampire powers, they were a dangerous opponent. If they were killed, they would just come back bigger and stronger later. The only weakness of these powerful demon warriors was the jewel. The only way to permanently defeat them was to "bring darkness to a thousand eyes". In other words, smash the jewel. Angel relayed this important information as he smashed the jewel of his demon that disappeared in blinding flash of white light. He was about to warn Katie of a second important danger of these creatures when Cordelia's scream diverted his attention.

Wesley had been tossed and knocked out against a brick wall and Cordelia was threshing valiantly at the demon warrior. She managed to get a blow to the demon's head with the side of her crossbow; however, a backhanded blow sent her flying headfirst into the wall near Wesley. She, too, was unconscious.

"That's wasn't very nice!" Angel yelled as he drove his broadsword into the demon's back, careful to avoid any of the green blood. He pulled it out just as the demon spun around to face him. "Didn't your mother ever tell you not to hit girls?"

Katie was holding her own against the demon warrior. She had hoped that she didn't have to take on one by herself, but Angel took one and Cordelia and Wesley took another. It was only fair, though. They were mortals.

"Ow!" Katie turned her attention back to her opponent. She had been distracted by Cordy's scream and the Mohra demon took the opportunity to stab her in the right wrist with a dagger. She glanced down at the red stream and then moved just in time to avoid another blow. This thing shifted around so much it was hard for her to keep track of it. She was used to demons that basically stayed in one spot and weren't very coordinated.

"Jerk!" she yelled, fury shining in her yellow eyes. She whirled her sword in a wave of fury. The result was a pissed off, one-handed demon warrior. It swung the dagger in its left hand, which Katie was able to duck around, then threw a punch with its right arm stump. Katie blocked it with her right wrist and they froze in place for a brief moment. She leapt up and shoved the heel of her boot into the demon's forehead as hard as she could. Katie thought she heard a faint crack, and used her momentum to flip around the demon's arm to the ground. The Mohra demon began to scream and glow with a white light, and then it too disappeared like the first.

Katie's human features reappeared on her face as she watched it disappear. She then looked at her wrist which was bleeding profusely, but stared as some of the Mohra demon's glowing florescent green blood dripped its way down her hand and into the wound. There was a swirling of red and green blood as it mixed and instantly healed the laceration. Katie started to panic as a strange numbness came over her. She started glowing bright white and took a gasping breath. Katie then fell to her knees as the world started spinning wildly out of control.

"Help me!" she croaked just before everything went black.


	19. Check…mate!

Chapter 19 Check…mate!

"See, that's bad parenting. You should've been taught your manners!" Angel parried another blow with his sword. He saw a flash out of the corner of his eye and saw Katie standing there alone. _Two down, and one to go_, he thought. He was about to strike the fatal blow when another flash caught his attention. Angel turned just in time to see his glowing sister fall to her knees with Mohra blood on her hands. She looked in his direction, whispered, "Help me!" and then collapsed.

"KATIE!" He went to go help his sister when the demon ran his sword through Angel's chest and roundhouse kicked him in the side of his head. Angel fell to the ground stunned, dizzy and on the verge of consciousness.

* * *

Katie woke up and pushed herself into sitting position. She felt like she had been hit by a truck, and the pounding in her head was so loud that she could practically feel it throughout her body. She closed her eyes and hoped the pounding would go away. She took a deep breath and could feel the oxygen inflate her lungs. After a couple more deep breaths, her lightheadedness subsided, but the pounding only intensified. _Wait a minute! _She thought with a start. Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub. That was no pounding. That was her heart beating! She was alive! She opened her eyes and examined herself. The cut on her wrist was gone as were all of her other wounds. She squinted at another bright light, the sun. Sunbeams had begun to flood the alley with light. She stared at the golden rays and felt the sun's warmth on her skin for the first time in over two hundred years.

She looked back down the alley and saw Wesley and Cordelia still unconscious against the wall and Angel lying with a sword through his chest. She picked herself up off of the blacktop and stumbled toward her brother's body. She felt extremely uncoordinated and ungainly with her vampire grace and stealth gone. She tugged Angel with all her strength and barely moved him. She saw the sun slowly filling the alley and knew she had to get him to the only shady spot behind a large dumpster near Cordy and Wes. The girl pulled the sword out of Angel's chest and grabbed hold of her brother's collar. She was exhausted by the time she dragged Angel out of danger from the sun. He was beginning to stir and she shook him hard.

"Angel! Wake up!" she pleaded. "Please, you have to wake up! Liam! Angel!"

While she was preoccupied, Katie failed to detect the remaining Mohra creeping up behind her. It kicked her in the side and she found herself sailing back to the middle of the alley. Landing on her back, she writhed and gasped for breath. The demon walked up and stabbed downward with his sword. Katie rolled out of the way with millimeters to spare. She grasped a fallen sword and staggered to her feet. She gripped it with all her human girl strength and swung hard. The sword hit the demon's chainmail and the blow reverberated through the metal, causing Katie to loose her grip. She suddenly felt the demon's fist tighten around her throat and she was lifted off the ground. She kicked at the demon with her feet and clawed at its arm with her hands, but the grip remained firm. It carried the girl and pinned her up against a sunbathed wall. She could feel her mind beginning to shut down from lack of oxygen. She fought off the wave of unconsciousness that was threatening to wash over her.

* * *

"A_ngel! Wake up! Please, you have to wake up! Liam! Angel…"_ Angel heard his sister's pleading cries. He tried to open his eyes and let her know he was going to be okay, but he couldn't. He opened his eyes just enough to see Katie's form kneeling over him, and then a shadow loom behind her. In an instant, he heard her groan in pain and the sound of metal hitting metal. Angel summoned all of his strength to open his eyes and then sat up. The scene that lay before him was like something out of a nightmare. His sister was pinned up against the wall and struggling to be released from the demon's grasp. What was worse was that the wall was completely sunlit. Even if Angel had been in perfect condition, which he was far from at the moment, he would have been ashes by the time he reached Katie. Angel was powerless. He crawled over to Wesley and shook him violently, his eyes never leaving Katie who seemed to be going limp. The former Watcher opened his eyes and stared groggily at Angel.

"Wes, I need your help! The last Mohra has Katie, and I can't help her!"

Wesley shook his head to clear the fog and looked in the direction Angel was staring. He tried to make out the situation, but everything was a blur. There were several Angel's leaning over him. Wesley tried to sit up, but fell back onto the pavement and slipped back into the black oblivion.

_Oh Katie! I can't lose you. Please, I can't lose you!_ Angel sobbed and pleaded in his mind. Only a miracle could save her. He wiped a tear from his cheek and tried to calculate how fast he would be able to get to her and whether he would make it before he completely burned up. _I'm not going to let you die. I WILL save you, Katie, or die trying._ Angel knew he would die even if he did manage to get to her. He would not be able to get into shade quick enough afterward. There was no way he would be able to recover from burns that severe. He pulled himself into standing position and took one last look at his family with sorrow filling is dark brown eyes. _Good bye, Wes and Cordy._

* * *

_No, not like this. Don't let it end like this._ Katie thought as she felt the darkness closing in. She felt herself go limp and her eyes close. Suddenly, she felt a surge of power, more power than she ever felt before, run through her. It was like an electric current the caused all of her nerves to come alive. It was similar to when she unleashed her vampire power, but she was human now and something just felt different. Her dark intense eyes flew open and she looked at the Mohra demon with determination and confidence flashing in those eyes.

"I'm not done yet!" Katie snarled. Her lips curled into a small smile as she gripped the demon's wrist with both hands and squeezed. She arched her back and planted her feet against the wall. Pushing off as hard as she could, Katie propelled herself and the demon backward. With the demon slightly off balance, she wrenched herself free of its grasp. Still holding onto its wrist, Katie spun and flipped the demon over her shoulder and onto the pavement. Instantly, the demon was on its feet. The girl blocked several of its blows with more grace, speed, and power than she ever thought she could possess. Growing tired of the fight, Katie unleashed a series of powerful kicks and punches on the demon warrior. Performing a perfect back handspring, she grasped the handle of a broken dagger and rammed it into the ruby red jewel.

"CHECK…MATE!" she said through gritted teeth to the disappearing demon warrior.

* * *

Angel was poised to rush into the sunlight when a brilliant flash of light stopped him in his tracks. It was more of a pink hue than the earlier flashes, and it didn't go away. Instead, it surrounded Katie and then seemed to fade, but never fully disappeared. He saw Katie's eyes fly open and in a flash, almost too quick for him to see, the Mohra demon was on his back on the pavement. The fight that ensued was brief, but as graceful as a dance. Katie moved with more grace and speed than she had ever exhibited before. _I have only seen one other person fight like that, _Angel thought as he stared in amazement. The two dueled in the sun-filled alley until the demon disappeared in a white flash.

Katie turned and faced her brother, the pink glow intensifying once again. She seemed to freeze in that moment of time, yet changes were happening. They started out subtle at first and then became more noticeable. Katie grew taller and began to develop more womanly features. Her facial features matured. Within moments, the glow faded and there stood a 5 foot 7 woman.

"Katie!" Angel yelled. Katie stared at her new body and noticed that her pants were a few inches too short and her shirt was a bit too tight for her new chest. She then looked over at Angel who was standing on the edge of the last shadowy spot looking at her with concern written all over his face. Cordelia had begun to regain consciousness and Wesley was leaning upright against the wall trying to make sense over the scene he had just witnessed.

"Angel!" Katie cried as she ran over to her brother with smoothness and grace. They wrapped their arms around each other and sobbed in relief.


	20. What's past is past

Chapter 20 What's past is past

"Ok, so I understand how I became human. The Mohra demon's blood has regenerative properties. It got in me through my wrist and made me human. What I still don't understand it what happened after that. How do I still have the speed and strength? And how did I suddenly become an eighteen year old?"

A few hours and ice packs later, the Angel Investigations team was back at the office still trying to make sense out of the morning's events. They were able to get Angel out of the alley by using an old blanket in the dumpster for cover. Katie changed into better fitting clothes and tended to his wounds while Wesley and Cordelia scrounged ice and painkillers. Once everyone was cleaned and medicated up, the research began to explain Katie's new state. Angel told the group about his past experience with a Morha demon and his 24 hours of humanity that resulted from getting his blood mixed. He had traded his humanity to save Buffy by having the Oracles turn back time. Only he carried the memory of that day.

"Angel, what was your last name?" Wesley asked, looking up from an old leather-bound text. It was nearly identical to the two foot stack that sat on the left side of the desk.

"Um…," Angel struggled to remember. "O'Connor."

"Hmm…Katherine O'Connor…ah…" Wesley mumbled to himself. "Oh…oh my!"

"What?!" Angel asked in alarm.

"Yeah, what's up?" Katie questioned, walking over to Wesley's side.

"Did you find anything yet?" Cordelia announced entering the room. She had decided to rest for a while.

"Well…I can't be certain. I'll have to check some other sources to be sure, but I think I may have the answer, though it's almost too hard to believe," the British man rambled in excitement.

"Just spit it out already!" Katie nudged him impatiently.

"It seems that Miss Katherine O'Connor was to be called as the next vampire slayer; however, she was turned before coming of age. Most slayers are not called until their late teen years."

"You mean Katie was going to be a slayer?" Angel asked in disbelief looking at his now-grown up sister.

"That is correct, except I don't think the gift ever left. Now that she's human again, she can fulfill her destiny as a slayer."

"Me? A vampire slayer?" Katie was still trying to make sense of her new role in the world.

"That still doesn't explain how teenie bopper here skipped, like, five years," Cordelia pointed out.

"Well, I know Katie couldn't have had her full powers in her youthful state…" Wesley gave a shrug.

"It was a miracle!" Katie interrupted. The crew looked at her in surprise from her sudden outburst. "It had to be. I was still a girl when I killed that last Morha," she went on to explain. "I thought I was going to die. I was a normal human. I was powerless against that thing. All of sudden, I just knew I could take it. It was kind of like when I used to vamp out, but different somehow."

"The Powers that Be must need you pretty bad then. They gave you powers to defeat that beast, and now the maturity to really access those powers," Cordelia reasoned. "Oh God, I'm starting to sound like Wesley!" she said in mock horror.

"That makes sense, Cordy," Angel replied.

"Ok, so now that mystery's solved," Katie said hesitantly. "Now what?"

"I think I need to call Giles," Wesley excused himself from the room to use the phone.

* * *

"I won't be that far away, Angel," Katie said to her brother standing in the doorway of Cordelia's apartment. She was packing her clothes for an extended trip to Sunnydale. Giles was going to begin her official slayer training there until she got her own Watcher. "You can come and visit."

"No, I try to stay away from there. Too many bad memories," Angel replied with a pained expression. Katie closed her suitcase and crossed the room.

"Then I'll come back here and make sure you're staying out of trouble, bro," she teased, giving Angel a hug. "By that time, I'll be good enough to kick your ass!"

"In your dreams, sis" Angel laughed. He held her at arm's length and said, "I have a surprise for you. It's sort of a going-away and good luck present." He reached in his pocket and withdrew a golden heart-shaped locket.

"Oh! It's my locket! I thought I lost it in a fight!" Katie gasped in surprise. She was overjoyed to see the only token she had of her past with her normal family.

"Yes, it's your locket. I got the chain fixed and something else too. Look inside," he said with love in his eyes. Katie took the locket and opened the clasp. 'Happy Birthday, darling sister' was written on the back of the front half like always. What had changed was the back half. It had been changed to 'With love forever, _Angel_'. Tears welled up in her eyes and one escaped down her cheek.

"Will you put it on?" she asked. She walked over to the oval wall mirror. She smiled at her reflection and watched as the locket seemed to float around her neck and settle itself at the nape of her neck. She turned and threw her arms around Angel's stout form. "I promise I will never take it off," she sobbed into his chest. "Thank you so much, for everything."

"I love you, sweet Katie," Angel replied, trying to keep his tears from rising.

"Ahem, Giles is waiting," Wesley entered the room, interrupting the moment.

"Alright," Katie replied as she stepped away and wiped her tears. "Take care of yourself, big brother." She grabbed Angel's hand and gave it a squeeze before picking up her bags and heading for the door.

"I guess that's about it," Cordelia said as Wesley closed the trunk.

"Yeah, I guess so. I can't thank you enough, Cordy, for everything you've done. You believed in me when no one else would," she reached out and gave the older girl a hug.

"Don't mention it," the seer replied, returning the embrace. They stepped apart as Wesley opened the passenger door.

"And you," Katie said to him. "I'm so sorry for all the trouble I caused in the beginning."

"What's past is past," he replied with an air of formality.

"Oh, don't give me that, Wes," she said with a gleam in her eyes. She pulled the man into a tight bear hug. "I'm just glad you're man enough to say that. Now, don't ever lose that suspicion. It may just save all of us one day. You have to look out for the brooding one for me, ok?"

"Will do," Wes smiled and helped her into the car.

Angel silently waved and watched as the car drew away from the curb. When the car was out of sight, he heard the other two turn and enter the office, but remained at the curb for a moment. He felt like he was losing his sister all over again, but this time he truly cared. Angel knew she would return, but it would not be the same. She would no longer be the innocent little girl or even vampire she once was. She would return a mature, beautiful warrior who would no longer need his protection. He turned to leave when the radio from a passing car stopped him in his tracks.

_ When the sun sinks down over the water…_

"_Everything gets hotter when the sun goes down_," he softly sang, fondly remembering the 'Vampire's Anthem'. A small smile crossed his face at the memory. "Good bye, dear sweet Katie," the vampire whispered into the wind, before joining the rest of his family in the office.

Fin.

* * *

A.N. I would like to once again thank everyone who took the time to read this and review. **Colburn, you so totally and completely rock!**

I never thought this story would be so long or even go through everything it did. I hope to make this into a series revolving around Katie the Slayer...feel free to toss out new ideas!

Happy reading and writing y'all!


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